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Federal Bureau of Investigation
Prosecutive Report of Investigation Concerning
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Roy Bryant - Deceased;
John William Milam, also knowQ as J.W. Milam - Deceased;
Leslie F. Milam - Deceased;
Melvin L. Campbell - Deceased;
Elmer O. Kimbrell - Deceased;
Hubert Clark - Deceased;
Levi Collins, also known as, Too Tight Collins - Deceased;
Johnny B. Washington - Deceased;
Otha J .Ir . itlsn k nown as Osn - Deceased ;
Emmett Louis Till - Deceased - Victim;
Civil Rights - Conspiracy
Domestic Police Cooperation
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Table of Contents
Index of Appendices
Narrative of the Offense
L Synopsis
IL Background
A. Geographic/Societal Points oflnterest
1. Leflore County
2 , Sunflower County *
3. Tallahatchie County
4, Delta Socioeconomics
B. Segregation and Precipitating Events
L Segregation and the Mississippi Delta
2. Negro Law
3. Brown v. The Board of Education
4. The Citizen's Councils
5. Other Significant Events in 1955
6 . The Scene of Events
III. Details *
A. Persons Involved
1. Emmett Louis Till
2. Wright Family
3. Crawford Family
4. The Walker Family
5. The Milam/Bryant Family
6- 1 ~1& Rov Brvant
7. John William Mila m &A I
b 6 8 . Leslie F + Milam & \
b7c 9 , Melvin L» Campbell & |
10- Elmer O.Kimbrell
1 L Hubert Clark
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13. Lev i Collins
14. Johnny B. Washington
15. Otha Johnson Jr.
16- 1 _ _ \
17 Marv “Amanda” “Am andv” Bradley
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19 , - ,l~"
20 -
B. Key Locations
1. Bryant’s Grocery & Meat Market
2. Grover C Frederick Farm
3. Glendora, Mississippi
4- Clint Shurden Plantation
IV. Investigation of the Offense 1
A, Time Line
B. Sequence of Events
L Saturday/Sunday - August 20-21 t 1955
2, Wednesday - August 24, 1955
3 + Saturday - August 27, 1955
4. Sunday - August 28, 1955
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TABLE OF CONTENTS (continued)
5. Monday - August 29, 1955
6, Wednesday - August 31, 1955
Movement and Identification of the Body
State of Mississippi vs* Roy Bryant and Milam
November 8, 1955 - Leflore County Grand Jury
C
D
E.
F. Admissions
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2 *
3.
4.
5.
6-1
Look Magazine
J.W. Milam’s Admission
Roy Bryant’s Admission
Leslie F. Milam’s Death Bed Confession *
Leslie F* Milam’s Statements to Confidential Sourc j j
l Admtssions *
7. Lam arcus Pilate
Laboratory, Medical and Other Findings
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L
2,
3.
Ithaca, Model M1911-A1, .45 Caliber Pistol
Identification and Search of£
H*
Exhumation & Autopsy of Remains
a* CT Examination
b. Forensic Dental Examination
c. Evidence of Injury
d* Mitochondrial DNA Examination
e* Anthropological Examination
f Laboratory Results
g* Ammunition Data
h. Processing of Evidence
l Anatomic Diagnosis
j* Medical Examiner’s Opinion
Other Allegations
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Subjects ii '
Witnesses
Evidence
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3* KuKluxKlan and Other Allegations
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Mi sc O/S
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Report of:
Date:
Case ID#: 44A-JN-30I12
62D-JN-30045
February 9, 2006
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Office: JACKSON
NARRATIVE OF THE OFFENSE
I. SYNOPSIS:
On August 24, 1955, Emmett Louis Till, a fourteen-year-old black male from Chicago,
Illinois, visiting relatives in Leflore County, Mississippi, entered the Bryant Grocery & Meat Market
in the town of Money, Mississippi. Till exited the store and shortly thereafter Carolyn Bryant, the
store owner's wife, exited as well. Upon Carolyn Bryant's exit, Till whistled. The relatives
accompanying him knew his whistle would cause trouble and they left in haste, taking Till with them.
On August 28, 1955, at approximately 2:30 a.m., Roy Bryant (Carolyn Bryant’s husband),
J. W. Milam and at least one other person appeared at the home of Mose Wright, Till's great uncle,
looking for the boy who had "done the talking" in Money and abducted Till from the home.
Following Till’s abduction, Roy Bryant and J.W. Milam were arrested by the Leflore County
Sheriffs Department and charged with kidnaping.
On August 31, 1 955, a naked body presumed to be Till’s was found floating in a section of
the Tallahatchie River running along the border between Tallahatchie and Leflore Counties. A
seventy-five pound cotton gin fan was tied with barbed wire to the neck of the floating body and
there was extensive trauma to the head. Upon discovery of the body and its subsequent
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identification as Emmett Till, Roy Bryant and J. W. Milam were indicted on charges of murder in
Tallahatchie County.
From September 19, 1955 through September 23, 1955, Roy Bryant and J.W. Milam were
tried for Till’s murder in the Circuit Court, Second Judicial District of Tallahatchie County,
Seventeenth Judicial District of Mississippi, and acquitted.
On November 8, 1955, a Grand Jury in Leflore County met to consider kidnaping charges
against Milam and Bryant. The Grand Jury returned a No Bill and no other charges, to date, have
been filed on Milam, Bryant, or any other person in connection with Till’s kidnaping and murder.
Milam and Bryant later confessed to kidnaping and murdering Till to William Bradford Huie,
a reporter, and the account was published in Look magazine on January 24, 1956.
J.W. Milam died in 198 1 and Roy Bryant died in 1994. The judge at trial, Curtis M. Swango,
Jr.; the Court Reporter, James T. O’Day; prosecuting attorneys, Gerald Chatam, Robert B. Smith, III
and Hamilton Caldwell; and defense attorneys J. J. Breland, C. Sidney Carlton, J.W. Kellum and
John W. Whitten are deceased. Defense attorney
is the sole surviving court b6
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officer who participated in the trial. Additionally, the original court, District Attorney, and
investigative records related to the 1955 investigation have apparently been lost.
To date, no investigation into this matter, with the exception of the original 1955
investigation, has been conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Mississippi Bureau of
Investigation, or any other law enforcement agency.
The instant investigation was opened on May 7, 2004, at the request of the District Attorney,
4 th Judicial District, Greenwood, Mississippi, in an effort to determine if other individuals were
involved in these crimes and to bring forth state indictments against these individuals if it is deemed
appropriate.
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II. BACKGROUND:
Fifty years have passed since the events under investigation here. The persons alleged to
have been involved in the kidnaping and murder of Emmett Louis Till were bom, raised, lived and
worked in the Mississippi Delta. At the time of these events in 1955, the Mississippi Delta was a
place where racial attitudes now considered abhorrent were the norm for a significant segment of
society. “Jim Crow’’ laws were a framework through which the races interacted; and “Negro
Justice”, an unwritten, de facto, separate legal system, served as the foundation for jurisprudence
between blacks and whites. The sweeping reforms of the civil rights movement which occurred in
the decades following these events caused vast changes which led to the integration of the black
community into main stream society.
This background contains geographic and population data concerning the counties in which
the crimes took place; Mississippi Delta socioeconomic information; information regarding
segregation, education and other social issues; and a summary of precipitating events leading up to
August 1955.
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MAP 1 - TALLAHATCHIE, LEFLORE and SUNFLOWER COUNTIES
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A. Geographic/Societal Points of Interest: The geographic areas of importance in this
investigation center on the Mississippi counties of Leflore, Sunflower, and Tallahatchie. Till was
kidnaped in Leflore County, taken by force to Sunflower County, his body was discovered on the
border of Tallahatchie and Leflore Counties, and the trial of Milam and Bryant occurred in
Tallahatchie County.
These three counties are all situated, in whole or in part, within the Mississippi Delta area. In
1955 these counties were populated by a majority of black citizens and were mainly comprised of
vast plantations which were sharecropped by black tenant farmers. The exception was the "Hill"
area of Tallahatchie County, the easternmost portion of the county, which was comprised of much
smaller farms and where sharecropping was rare. 1,2
1. Leflore County: Leflore County, like neighboring Tallahatchie and Sunflower
Counties, is now, and was in 1955, a primarily agrarian county. It is comprised of 606 square miles,
the majority of which are fanned. Greenwood is the county seat and the municipality of the greatest
population. In 1950 Greenwood had a total population of 18,061 persons, with approximately fifty
percent of the population being black. The median per capita income was $1 ,891 . In 1950 Leflore
County had a population of 51 ,813, with sixty-eight percent of the population being non- white, of
which 17,893 were of voting age and 297 were registered to vote. Forty-three percent of the
working population was engaged in agricultural work and 4.7 percent of the working population was
employed in manufacturing jobs. The median annual per capita income was $918, with the average
1 Hugh Steven Whitaker, “A Case Study in Southern Justice - The Emmett Tilt Case”, (Master’s Thesis, Florida State
University, 1963), 17 to 18
2 United States Commission on Civil Rights, Report of the United States Commission on Civil Rights 1959 , 59
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annual income of black families being $595. The average adult had completed 6.4 years of school
with black adults averaging 4.3 three years of education. * * 4 5 6 7
2. Sunflower County: Sunflower County is comprised of 693 square miles, all in
the fertile Mississippi Delta area. It is approximately fifty miles long, running north and south,
eighteen miles wide for one-half its length and fifteen miles wide for the other half. In 1950
Sunflower County had a population of 56,03 1, with sixty-eight percent of the population being non-
white, of which 8,949 were of voting age and 1 14 were registered to vote. Indianola, the county seat,
had a population of 4,369 in 1955. The town of Drew is located approximately thirty miles north of
Indianola and, in 1950, had a population of 1,681 persons. The majority of the working population,
sixty-seven percent, was employed in the agricultural sector, and one percent of the working
population was employed in manufacturing jobs. The median annual per capita individual income
at the time was $744, with the average annual income of black families being $544. The average
adult had completed 5.7 years of school, with black adults averaging 4. 1 years of education. In the
eight years following the Brown v. The Board of Education decision in 1 954, only four Sunflower
County black citizens were registered to vote. 5, 6> 7
Sunflower County was the home of United States Senator James O. Eastland, a staunch
segregationist who was in office during 1955, and who owned a plantation near the town of
Doddsville, eleven miles south of Drew. Additionally, the first Citizens’ Council, a segregationist
J United States Bureau of Census, 1950 Census of the Population , Volume II, Characteristics of the Population, Part 24,
Mississippi,
A United States Commission on Civil Rights, Report of the United States Commission on Civil Rights J959 ) 60
5 United States Bureau of Census, 1950 Census of the Population ; Volume II, Characteristics of the Population, Part 24,
Mississippi
6 Let the People Decide, Black Freedom and White Resistance Movements in Sunflower County , Mississippi, 1945 -
J986 7 J* Todd Moye, 2004, 226
7 United States Commission on Civil Rights, Report of the United States Commission on Civil Rights 1959, 60
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organization and the model for other segregationist organizations, was formed in Indianola,
Mississippi.
3. Tallahatchie County: Nicknamed the "Free State of Tallahatchie", Tallahatchie
County is comprised of 644 square miles, divided geographically, politically and socially into two
distinct sections: the Delta, to the west; and the Hills, to the east . The county is bisected by the
Tallahatchie River and has two county seats, located in the towns of Charleston and Sumner.
Glendora, where J.W. Milam lived and operated a store, is located on the west side of the county, in
the Delta area. Glendora had a population of 178 persons in 1950. 8 ’ 9
In 1950 the county had a population of 30,486, with 19,408 persons (sixty-three percent of
the population) being non- white, of which 9,235 blacks were of voting age and none were registered
to vote. In 1950 the county's total labor force consisted of 9,476 persons, of which 6,541 were
engaged in agricultural jobs. The median annual per capita individual income was $607, with the
average annual income of black families in the county being $462. The average adult had completed
5.7 years of school with black adults averaging 3.9 years of school attendance. In 1950 1 ,262 homes
had flush toilets with 173 of these homes being occupied by blacks. I0, 1 1
4. Delta Socioeconomics; In 1955 there were definitive socioeconomic strata within
Mississippi Delta society. Black persons were considered to be at the bottom of the socioeconomic
scale. The next level above blacks was the white sharecropper, followed by the white business
person who catered to the black community. The white subjects in this investigation fall into the
latter category. All other segments of white society, farmers, store owners who catered to the white
8 Hugh Steven Whitaker, “A Case Study in Southern Justice - The Emmett Till Case”, (Master’s Thesis, Florida State
University, 1963), 20
9 United States Bureau of Census, 1950 Census of the Population , Volume II, Characteristics of the Population, Part 24,
Mississippi
10 United States Bureau of Census, 1950 Census of the Population, Volume II, Characteristics of the Population, Part 24,
Mississippi
11 United States Commission on Civil Rights, Report of the United States Commission on Civil Rights 19 59, 60
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community, business leaders etc., were perceived to be socioeconomically superior to these two
segments of the white community. 12 The Milam and Bryant families operated a number of small
country stores throughout the counties of interest. Each of these stores catered to the black
community.
Few opportunities for employment outside of the agricultural sector were available for blacks
in the Delta. For those blacks who were able to attend more than a few years of school, career
prospects were few. 13
J. W. Milam operated an agriculture service business in addition to a store in Glendora,
Mississippi, and had interest in at least two other stores, one owned by his half-brother Roy Bryant
and the other by his brother Thomas Lamar “Bud” Milam. At least one other brother, Leslie Milam,
managed a farm. Other brothers and sisters, including Louise Campbell and her husband Melvin
Campbell and mother, Eulah Bryant, operated stores which primarily catered to the black
community.
B. Segregation and Precipitating Events:
1. Segregation and the Mississippi Delta: In 1955 the state of Mississippi was a
segregated society, as was most of the South. After the Civil War many states had enacted laws,
termed “Jim Crow” or “Black Code”, to maintain a separation of blacks and whites in the use of
certain public facilities. By 1 907 the list of public places where segregation was mandatory included
theaters, water fountains, street cars, boarding houses and other public institutions. I4 ’ 15 By 1955
12 Personal experiences of members of the investigation team and anecdotal evidence related to investigators by persons
interviewed and/or interacted with during the investigation
,J Let the People Decide, Black Freedom and White Resistance Movements in Sunflower County, Mississippi, 1945 -
1986, J. Todd Moye, 2004, 24
1J Hugh Steven Whitaker, “A Case Study in Southern Justice - The Emmett Till Case", (Master’s Thesis, Florida State
University, 1963), 29 to 30
15 United States Commission on Civil Rights, Freedom to Free, Century of Emancipation 1863-1963, A Report of the
United States Commission on Civil Right, 1963, 60
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segregation of the races was a core concept that permeated almost every aspect of Mississippi Delta
society.
In the Mississippi Delta, separate black and white public bathroom facilities, drinking
fountains, restaurants and other means of keeping the races apart were the norm. It was common for
black persons to refer to white persons as "Mr.," "Mrs.,” "Miss," "Sir," or "Ma'am;" however, it was
out of the norm for a white person to refer to a black person in kind. Blacks avoided contradicting
whites, did not offer to shake the hand of a white person first, commonly talked with their eyes
turned down to the ground when speaking to whites, did not speak unless spoken to first by whites,
and commonly used the back door when entering white homes. When purchasing items from a
white store owner, blacks did not normally place the money directly into the white person’s hand;
instead, they would place the money on the counter. This exchange avoided skin contact between
blacks and whites. Change would be returned to blacks without making skin contact as well. I6, 17,
19
who was interviewed during the course of this investigation, recalled dealing with
at her store in Money, Mississippi, “. . . when you’d buy somethin’, you
know, she’d drop the money in your hand and she never would touch your hand or nothin’, you
know...” ”. . .She never would allow you to touch her hand.” 20
2. Negro Law: In the Mississippi Delta, a de facto institution of separate justice was
in place for whites and blacks. The white population could rely on the normal vestments of
government and call on the local sheriffs department for assistance in criminal matters. This was
not the case for blacks. The black population was dealt with in a manner which some historians
Hugh Steven Whitaker, “A Case Study in Southern Justice - The Emmett Till Case”, (Master’s Thesis, Florida State
Misc o/ s University, 1963), 2 to 15
18 Personal experiences of members of the investigation team and anecdotal evidence related to investigators by persons
interviewed and/or interacted with during the investigation
c
P#s>nt* tU* far Biaht* m A/ictiWi™/ tQQA Irshw* T^ftnw Oft
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have called “Negro Law,” a system where the gravity of the crime was determined in large part by
its impact on whites . 21
Many of the older white and black persons interviewed and/or interacted with during this
investigation related the manner in which whites were to interact with blacks when problems arose.
If a white person had a problem with a black person, the issue would be taken up with the black
person's "land owner", the person who owned the farm where the black person, or that person’s
family, sharecropped. The "land owner" would then take care of the problem by a number of means.
These means included the paying off of debts and other non-violent solutions, but also included
beatings, whippings and other uses of force. Much the same was done in the case of black on black
crime/problems. The victim's "land owner" would take up the issue with the subject's "land owner"
and the issue would be resolved. The black community had almost no recourse when dealing in
problems with whites, especially crimes committed against blacks by whites. Only in the most
extreme circumstances did law enforcement become involved.
In addition to separating the races in public, Jim Crow laws were in place to enforce many
other forms of segregation, including laws forbidding intermarriage of the races, cohabitation of the
races, sexual conduct between persons of different races, and a system of separate schools for black
and white children. The black school system and the white school system were drastically different.
Funding and facilities were drastically disproportionate, with the black schools receiving far less
than white schools and the black schools operating in substandard facilities . 22
Not all events and/or practices were segregated. White and black children played together
while white and black adults hunted, fished and attended sporting events together. Movie theaters
21 Let the People Decide, Black Freedom and White Resistance Movements in Sunflower County, Mississippi, 1945 —
1986 , 1. Todd Moye, 2004, 5 to 7
22 Hugh Steven Whitaker, “A Case Study in Southern Justice - The Emmett Till Case", (Master’s Thesis, Florida State
University, 1963), 2 to 15
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were segregated, with sections for both races. In Tallahatchie County during the early 1950s, the
local black high school played its “big football game of the year” at the white high school because
!
the seating and lighting were better. 23
3. Brown v. The Board of Education: On May 17, 1954, the United States Supreme
Court, in its decision on Brown v. The Board of Education, decreed schools be desegregated, that
"separate but equal" education was unlawful. In Mississippi there was a strong reaction to the ruling,
The editor of the Jackson Daily News, Frederick Sullens, wrote:
"Human blood may stain southern soil in many places because of this decision, but the dark
red stains of that blood will be on the marble steps of the United States Supreme Court
building. White and Negro children in the same schools will lead to miscegenation. It means
racial strife of the bitterest sort. Mississippi cannot and will not try to abide by the
decision." 24
Citizens, lawmakers and community leaders also reacted to the ruling. Mississippi Senator
James 0. Eastland, Governor Hugh L. White, judges and many other officials spoke out publicly,
voicing their opposition to the Court's ruling. Previously, private organizations had been formed in
seventeen Mississippi counties to promote segregation. Following the ruling the movement to
organize these groups gained speed. 25
4. The Citizens’ Councils: On July 1 1, 1954, the Indianola Citizens’ Council was
formed to promote segregation. The Indianola Citizens’ Council's plan for organization served as a
model and soon other similar segregationist groups were formed throughout Mississippi. 26
On October 12, 1954, the Association of Citizens’ Councils of Mississippi (ACCM) was
formed. ACCM headquarters were initially located in Winona, Mississippi, then in 1955 moved to
Greenwood, Mississippi. The ACCM Annual Report: August 1955 states the organization had
23 Ibid . , 42
14 Ibid, 64 to 65
25 The Citizens ' Council, Organized Resistance to the Second Reconstruction, 1954-64, Neil R. McMillen, 1 994, 1 5 to 18
26 Ibid., 16 to 20
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60,000 members in 253 Councils throughout Mississippi. 27 The Councils openly promoted the
cause of segregation through legal means and did not officially advocate violence. 28 ; However, at
least one Council flyer of the time reflects the organization’s use of intimidation and the fact the
threat of violence was sanctioned. 29
The Councils attempted to have an effect on the Till matter. During Hugh Steven Whitaker’s
research in 1963, he interviewed the jurors who rendered the acquittal of Bryant and Milam in Till’s
death and learned that every juror had been visited by members of the Council to make sure they (the
jurors) voted “the right way”. 30
5. Other Significant Events in 1955: On May 7, 1955, Willie George Washington
Lee, a black minister in the town of Belzoni, Mississippi (located approximately twenty-three miles
south of Indianola, Sunflower County, in neighboring Humphreys County), and the first black
person to register to vote in the Humphreys County, was murdered. Lee had been killed with a
shotgun. No one was arrested or charged for the crime. Humphreys County Sheriff I. J. Shelton
made public statements that the metal fragments in Lee’s jaw were probably fillings from his teeth.
A coroner's jury ruled that Lee had died of bleeding from a wound caused by No. 3 buckshot. 31,32
On May 31, 1955, the United States Supreme Court issued an implementation decree calling
on the states to desegregate the schools with "all deliberate speed". Within sixty days black parents
had petitioned school boards in Clarksdale, Jackson, Natchez, Vicksburg and Yazoo City to gain
v Ibid., 25 to 26
28 Ibid, 360
29 Ibid, 191 :
50 Hugh Steven Whitaker, “A Case Study in Southern Justice - The Emmett Till Case", (Master’s Thesis; Florida State
University, 1963), 154
jl Let the People Decide, Black Freedom and White Resistance Movements in Sunflower County, Mississippi, 1945 —
1986, J. Todd Moye, 2004, 80
ji Hugh Steven Whitaker, “A Case Study in Southern Justice - The Emmett Till Case", (Master’s Thesis, Florida State
University, 1963), 82 to 84
17
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entry to the all white schools for their children. Senator Eastland responded to the ruling, stating the
decree:
"...calls for an immediate start for the mixing of the races in the schools...To resist is
the only answer. We must resist them in the courts, in our legislative halls, and by the
ballots of our people. I know Southern people will not surrender their dual school
system and their racial heritage at the command of this crowd of racial politicians in
judicial robes.” 33
On August 13, 1955, Lamar Smith, a sixty-three year old farmer. World War II veteran, and
black voting advocate, was murdered in Brookhaven, Mississippi, on the courthouse lawn, in front of
the sheriff. Three white men were arrested for the murder however; a grand jury did not return any
indictments in the case. 34, 33
6. The Scene of Events: The societal issues and realities noted above set the stage
for the kidnaping of Till which occurred on August 28, 1955. The white citizens of Mississippi were
bombarded daily with news surrounding the end of segregated schools, efforts by blacks to register
to vote and the heated calls for the defense of their segregated way of life. Senators, Congressmen,
the State Assembly, the Governor and most public officials were calling on the population to defend
the status quo, to defy the Supreme Court implementation ruling, oppose federal efforts to enforce
segregated schools and to continue poll practices which disenfranchised blacks. The fear that they
would lose control of their way of life permeated the lower socioeconomic segments of the white
community. This segment of the community, in particular, believed they had the most to lose if the
black community truly became equal. 36
33 Ibid, 86 to 87
* Ibid., 96 to 97
j! The Citizens ' Council. Organized Resistance to the Second Reconstruction, 1954-64, Neil R. McMillen, 1994, 217
36 Hugh Steven Whitaker, “A Case Study in Southern Justice - The Emmett Till Case’’, (Master’s Thesis, Florida State
University, 1963), 82 to 100 * *
18
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III. DETAILS:
A. Persons Involved:
1. Emmett Louis Till, also known as Bobo and Bo:
Date of Birth:
Place of Birth:
Date of Death:
Burial Location;
July 25, 1941
Chicago, Illinois
August 28, 1955
Burr Oak Cemetery, Chicago, Illinois
Till, who was fourteen years old at the time of his death, was bom and raised in Chicago,
Illinois. His mother, Mamie Bradley, later Mamie Till- Mobley, was bom in the town of Webb,
Tallahatchie County, Mississippi. Till had visited Mississippi on three other occasions prior to
August 1955; as an infant; as a toddler; and again when he was nine years old. Till had a speech
impediment due to a childhood illness, but was understandable when he spoke. Till was large for his
20
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age, weighing about 1 50 pounds. Family accounts relate that Emmett Till was a fun loving, gentle
person who loved practical jokes and making other people laugh. J7, 38
Till’s father, Louis Till, died in Europe during 1 945. Records released to the press in October
1955 indicate that Louis Till, a Private in the U.S. Army assigned to the 177th Port Company, 397th
Port Battalion, was executed on July 2, 1945 by the U.S. Army for the rape of two women and the
murder of another in Italy. 39 The American Battle Monuments Commission verified Louis Till was
executed and is currently interred at the Oisne-Aisne Cemetery, Fere-en-Tardenois, France. 40,41
2. The Wright Family: The Wright family, headed by Mose Wright (deceased),
was the family with whom Till was visiting when he was abducted. Mose Wright was bom in
Lexington, Mississippi, and was sixty-four years old in 1955. Mose Wright was commonly referred
57 Death of Innocence, The Story of The Hate Crime That Changed America, Maime Till-Mob ley and Christopher
ftemrw
4U William Bradford Huie. “Why the Army Hanged Emmett Till’s Father." Confidential. May 1956
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to by many people in the community as Preacher or Preacher Wright. The Wright family home was
located approximately three miles east of Money, Mississippi, along the Dark Ferry Road on the
Grover C. Frederick farm. The Wright family members living in the home at the time of the
abduction were Mose and Elizabeth Wright (both deceased), as well as their sons, Maurice Wright
(deceased).
and
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was also visiting) and Mose Wright’s grandson, Curtis Jones (deceased), were also in the home at
the time of the kidnaping. Till had traveled from Illinois to Mississippi with Mose Wright and
following a funeral Mose Wright had attended in Chicago.
3. The Crawford Family: The Crawford family home neighbored the Wright’s
home on the Grover C. Frederick farm, and was situated just west of the Wright home,
approximately 100 yards toward Money, Mississippi. Jonas and Floridy Crawford (both deceased)
had four children who were living at home during August 1955. They were
and
The Crawford family and the
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Wright family enjoyed a close relationship, as both families sharecropped land together on the
Grover C. Frederick Plantation. The children of both families were constant companions.
4. The Walker Family: In 1955 the Walker family lived in Glendora, Mississippi.
Robert Walker, Sr. worked for the Central Illinois Railroad and his wife, Henrietta Walker worked
as a teacher in the local black public school. Living in the Walker home at the time of Till’s
abduction were Robert Walker Sr. and Henrietta Walker (both deceased),
A
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ana
L The Walker home was situated in such a
manner that one could see the Milam home and J.W, Milam’s store from the residence,
5, The Milam/Bryant Family; Eulah Bryant/Milam, nee Morgan, had at least eight
sons and three daughters fathered by two different men. They were Roy Bryant (deceased); Roy’s
22
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twin brother, Raymond Bryant (deceased); J.W. Milam (deceased); Leslie F. Milam (deceased);
Stanley Lamar “Bud” Milam (deceased);
Dan Milam (deceased); James Bryant
(deceased); Edward Bryant (deceased);
and
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The brothers were particularly close, operating businesses together, regularly playing cards and
drinking together. Various members of the family were engaged in the grocery business throughout
the Mississippi Counties of Leflore, Tallahatchie and Sunflower, with stores physically located in
Swan Lake, Glendora, Minter City, Itta Bena, Ruleville and Money, Mississippi. During his
research into the Till matter in 1963, Hugh Steven Whitaker interviewed individuals who knew J.W.
Milam and Roy Bryant. Whitaker stated “they were invariably referred to as ‘peckerwoods,* ‘white
trash,’ and other terms of disapprobation.” 42
«.[
]& Roy Bryant (deceased); f
was
bom orf
in
Mississippi and grew up in the
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father worked on various farms and the family lived inf
42 Hugh Steven Whitaker, “A Case Study in Southern Justice - The Emmett Till Case”, (Master's Thesis, Florida State
University, 1963), 144
23
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Press accounts relate
but
won |
”|Roy Bryant.
|met Roy Bryant when | ~j was^
] The couple married
two
years later in| jat
stoo
C
At the time of Till’s death, Q
l and weighed I
was
]
be
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After Roy Bryant’s acquittal for murdering Till, the couple moved to [_
] The couple
[ During their marriage, they had | | children, |~ [ boys an One son,
Roy Bryant Jr., died in 1995. I "l and currently lives with j |
A son .l ~l and
— ~1
another son.
]and the
For purposes of clarity
is referred
to
I [ and resides injj
throughout this report. £
=1
Jis currently
Roy Bryant was bom on January 31, 1931 in Charleston, Tallahatchie County,. Mississippi.
In 1955 Bryant was twenty-four years old, weighed one hundred-ninety pounds and was six feet tall.
Bryant served in the U.S. Army with the 82nd Airborne Division as a paratrooper, enlisting in June
1950 and serving until his discharge in 1953. During August 1955 Roy and| ~
bfi
CO- b?C
owned and operated Bryant’s Grocery & Meat Market, located in the to wn of Money, Leflore
County, and resided in living quarters located in the rear of the store. The business was owned by
Roy Bryant and his half-brother, J.W. Milam. Roy Bryant also worked part-time for J. W. Milam,
driving truck and delivering goods.
While living in Orange, Texas Roy Bryant was trained in welding, at which he worked for
many years. After the
Roy Bryant moved back to Mississippi and
24
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b6
remarried in 1980 to In his later years, Roy Bryant went partially blind from his
b7c earlier welding work and operated a store in Ruleville, Mississippi. Bryant was convicted tn the
Northern District of Mississippi on Food Stamp Fraud violations in 1984 and 1988. | ,
Bryant died of cancer on September
1, 1994.
b6 I fe J.W. Milam
b?c Circa 1955
7. John William Milam (deceased) &| \ John William Milam, fc
1 1 b
known as J.W. Milam, was bom in Tallahatchie County, Mississippi on February 18, 1919, and
attended school through the tenth grade. During World War II, J.W. Milam served honorably in the
U.S. Army with the 2 nd Armored Division from March 1941 through March 1946. Milam entered
military duty as a Private. He later received a battlefield commission to Lieutenant, and was
awarded a Purple Heart. In 1955 Milam was six feet two inches tall and weighed two hundred
25
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In 1950 the Milams moved to the town of Glendora, Tallahatchie County, Mississippi, and in
1955 the Milams owned a general store/service station and home there. J.W. Milam’s store sold
grocery goods primarily to the black community in the area.
and did
not work in the store. Milam allegedly sold moonshine from the store, in addition to the standard b6
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grocery items and fuel for automobiles. J.W. Milam also owned a trucking business hauling
agricultural products for customers. On occasion, he hired his half-brother, Roy Bryant, to drive
truck for him. Milam died of bladder cancer on December 31,1 980 currently
Mississippi.
resides in
(=
] currently a| | advised that during the late 1940s and early 1950s he
operated a substantial bootlegging business in the northern part of Mississippi. Two of £
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customers were J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant. | [ mostly sold half-pint bottles of whiskey to the
brothers, who always paid “up front and in cash” 43
8. Leslie F. Milam (deceased) &
Add Reed (deceased) be
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witnessed Leslie F. Milam at his farm located on the Clint Shurden Plantation on the morning of
Emmett Till’s kidnaping about the time another witness observed Till at the farm.
Leslie Milam, a brother of J.W. Milam and half-brother of Roy Bryant, was bom on
□
December 23, 1925.
when:
was bom on
and married Leslie Milam on
In 1955 the couple lived on a farm that Leslie
Milam managed located on the Clint Shurden Plantation, approximately two miles west of the town
of Drew, Sunflower County, Mississippi. Leslie Milam served in the Army Air Force during World
be
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Misc O/S
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War II and died on August 30, 1974.
is now
b6
remarried following Leslie Milam’s death and b 7 C
is not related to the Milam/Bryant family. The couple
currently reside ii£
9. Melvin L. Campbell (deceased) &
Melvin L.
Campbell told
that he had been with Roy Bryant the night that Roy Bryant
and J.W. Milam kidnaped and killed Emmett Till. Additionally, J.W. Milam related to a confidential
source that Campbell was present during the kidnaping and murder of Till.
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L. Campbell on£
] In 1955 the Campbells owned and operated a small country store
in Minter City, Leflore County, Mississippi. The couple lived in the rear of the store (like Roy and
and sold various household goods, food and automotive supplies, including tires.
Like the other family stores, the Campbell’s store catered to the black community in and around the
area. Melvin Campbell died on November 9, 1972. During the late 1980s,
in Roy Bryant’s, store in Ruleville, Mississippi.
worked
he
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^currently resides in£
and is£
]
10. Elmer O. Kimbrell (deceased): A man named Kimbrell, first name unknown to
b7c
Bryant when they appeared with Emmett Till at Bryant-Donham’s home/store.
27
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Elmer O. Kimbrell, a white male, was bom on February 12, 1922 in Sunflower
County, Mississippi. During 1955 Kimbrell lived in Glendora, Mississippi and may have worked at
the Glendora cotton gin at the time. In December 1955, Kimbrell shot and killed Clinton Melton, a
black man. Melton, an employee at a gasoline service station in Glendora, had allegedly filled the
gasoline tank on Kimbrell’ s vehicle when Kimbrell had only asked for three dollars worth of
gasoline. Kimbrell left the station, retrieved a gun, returned and killed Melton. When sheriffs
deputies arrived in Glendora, they found Kimbrell at J.W. Milam’s home. 44 Kimbrell was acquitted
when prosecuted for Melton’s murder. Kimbrell died in Tennessee in 1985.
11, Hubert Clark (deceased): Clark is identified in 1955 press accounts, without
attribution to any source, as having been present in the truck which carried Emmett Till. 45
Additionally, J.W. Milam identified Clark to Confidential Source j j as having been involved in b2
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Till’s kidnaping and murder. 46
Clark, a white male, bom on November 24, 1920, was a friend of J.W. Milam’s.
Clark served in the U.S. Navy during World War II and died of a heart attack on November 15, 1972
[ | jwho is still alive, has been identified by several
12 .
witnesses as having been involved in either the kidnaping of Emmett Till or efforts to clean-up after
the crime. j j has consistently denied any involvement or first-hand knowledge about the
crime.
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4 * 1 1 - “Attention Focused On Till Case Defendant In Afterma th of Shooting in Glend ora, Accused ,Man was
Queried in Mil am Home”, Clarksdale Press Register , December 8 , 1 955] | M , ... nim
I - Mose Wright. “How I Escaped From Mississippi.” Jef. '
]
n
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he rented a room at
[
Jhad another
establishment). Additionally,
with | | some of the children in the community calle<{
| j has referred to himself as
a juke joint (a gambling and drinking
Due to his relationship
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home in
Mississippi
was situated close enough to
:hat a person could view
1 1
jmoved from Mississippi to
M 1
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moved tc£
Irecently^
MZUZZh ontinues to reside i
~| and, according to family members,
and is
13. Levi Collins, also known as “Too Tight” Collins (deceased): Collins has been
identified by several witnesses as having been involved in both the kidnaping of Emmett Till and
efforts to clean-up after the crime.
Collins, a black male, was bom on September 28, 1935. Collins was married to
Treola Tyler on January 20, 1952 in Minter City, Mississippi, and the couple had four children. In
1955 Collins worked for J.W. Milam driving trucks and tractors. Following the Till incident, Collins
was taken to Chicago, Illinois by reporters working for the Chicago Defender. When interviewed,
he denied involvement in Till’s kidnaping and murder. At some point in time, Collins and his wife
divorced and Treola Collins moved to Seattle, Washington. There she marriei
remained in Seattle until her death in 1996. Collins eventually returned to Mississippi and died on
November 28, 1992 in Jackson, Mississippi.
29
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contents are not to be distributed outside your agency.
and
bb
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bo
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14. Johnny B. Washington (deceased): Washington was identified b
as having assisted
{
a
into a
Roy Bryant and J.W. Milam by forcin
pickup truck the evening prior to Till’s kidnaping.
Washington, a black male, was bom on February 7, 1 928 at Money, Mississippi.
I
Washington married
on
in Money, Mississippi and the
couple lived on the Ruddock Bananas Plantation outside of Money. In 1955 Washington worked for
Roy Bryant delivering groceries and performing odd jobs. The couple divorced ini 1
► jl7
Washington married again and died during October 1980 in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania.
15. Otha Johnson Jr., also known as “Oso” (deceased): Johnson related to his son,
that Johnson accompanied J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant the night Emmett Till
was kidnaped and murdered.
Johnson, a black male, was bom on April 17, 1934 Johnson lived and worked in the
Mississippi Delta in the towns of Drew, Webb, Glendora and Minter City. In 1955 Johnson worked
for J.W. Milam doing odd jobs, driving trucks and tractors. Johnson lived in Glendora, Mississippi
with! in 1 955 and they had at least two sons. After separating from
[
Johnson eventually moved to St. Louis, Missouri and then Chicago, Illinois. Johnson met
=>□ The couple remained together
there and they married in
until his death on March 2 1 , 2002 in Southaven, Mississippi.
who lived on a farm outside of f [ Mississippi, witnessed
16.
some of the events surrounding the kidnaping and was a witness at trial.
was bom in
Mississippi in L At the time of Till’s kidnaping
and murder, £
1
years old and lived with
on the
Mi sc 0/5
30
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contents are not to be distributed outside your agency.
be
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located just outside of j [ Mississippi. Following the events that are the subject of
this investigation, ] [ noved to | | Illinois and has been employed there since the j j
is now known as |
[hroughout this report.
working in a£
but for the purposes of
clarity he is referred to as
17. Mary “Amanda” “Amandy” “Mandy” Bradley (deceased): Bradley
witnessed some of the events surrounding Till’s kidnaping at a farm outside of Drew, Mississippi
and was a witness at trial.
Bradley lived at the Clint Shurden Plantation on Leslie Milam’s farm during the
events surrounding Till’s murder in 1955 and at the time she was fifty years old. Efforts to
definitively identify Bradley have been unsuccessful. Anecdotal evidence/stories related to
investigators indicate Bradley is deceased.
[allegedly witnessed events related to Till’s
18.
murder at the Clint Shurden Plantation, is pictured in news accounts of the time and was subpoenaed
did not testify and efforts to identify and locate him or his relatives have been
to trial.
unsuccessful.
19.
News accounts of the time allege that
Jwi
itnessed events
related to Till’s murder at the Clint Shurden Plantation and efforts to identify and locate him or his
relatives have been unsuccessful.
20. [ | Several witnesses have identified a man named
[
|jas having been involved in Till’s kidnaping.
H
male, was a resident of
Mississippi at the time. Efforts to identify and locate;
or
his relatives have been unsuccessful.
31
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contents are not to be distributed outside your agency.
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B. Kev Locations:
Bryant’s Grocery & Meat Market - Circa 1955
Photograph from '‘Getting Away With Murder:
The True Story of the Emmett Till Case" by Chris Crowe
1, Bryant's Grocery & Meat Market: Bryant's Grocery & Meat Market was
located in Money, Mississippi. The building housing the store was a two-story brick structure with
the store on the first floor in the front of the building; a living area on the first floor immediately
behind the store area, which the Bryants occupied; and an apartment above the store. The upstairs
apartment was occupied
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32
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2. Grover C. Frederick Farm: The Grover C. Frederick farm was located
approximately three miles east of Money, Mississippi on the Dark Ferry Road. The Wright and
Crawford families were sharecroppers for Frederick. The Wright family resided there in the former
Frederick home and the Crawford family resided in a home on the property as well. The
westernmost home was the Crawford home. Situated approximately one hundred yards east of the
Crawford home was the Wright home. Situated approximately two hundred yards west of the
Wright home was the Frederick home. 48
48 Appendix A - Transcript - State of Mississippi vs. J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant, Second District of Tallahatchie
County, Seventeenth Judicial District, September 1955 * Testimony of Mose Wright, 5, 20 to 21
33
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m
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Glendora Aerial View
Farm Service Agency Photograph
March 27, 1957
home and store
3+ Glendora, Mississippi: Glendora, Mississippi was the location of J.W t Milam r s
home; and the location where several witnesses observed
Milam's truck to have blood in the bed. The Glendora Cotton Gin was located approximately one
hundred yards from Milam's home. The McGarrh Store is the location at which Elmer Kimbrell
shot and killed Clinton Melton in December 19,55.
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contents are not lo be distributed outside your agency.
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Clint Shurden Plantation Aerial View
Farm Service Agency Photograph
December l, 1956
4. Clint Shurden Plantation: The Clint Shurden Plantation was located
approximately two miles west of Drew, Mississippi. Leslie and
Milam resided on the farm
as well as
Add Reed and Mary “Mandy” “Amanda” “Amandy” Bradley. According to
]Till was brought to the Clint Shurden Plantation , 49
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Mi sc 0/3
35
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contents are not to be distributed outside your agency.
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IV. INVESTIGATION OF THE OFFENSE: The kidnaping and murder of Emmett Till has been
the subject of numerous books, academic studies, documentary films and news stories. During the
course of this investigation some authors and producers of these works provided copies of transcripts
and raw film footage of interviews they had conducted during the course of their work. Throughout
this report the statements made during these interviews are provided in the interest of corroboration,
or lack thereof, to contemporary interviews conducted during the course of the investigation. The
circumstances surrounding these interviews cannot be determined or evaluated. The circumstances
surrounding third party witness interviews - how the witnesses were prepared, and, what, if any,
inducement or influence was involved - is not known.
36
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A. Time Line:
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bo
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Saturday - August 20-21. 1955: Emmett Till and
Chicago, Illinois, travel to Mississippi with Mose Wright.
residents of
Wednesday - August 24. 1955 - Evening : Till entered Bryant’s Grocery & Meat
Market in Money, Mississippi. Carolyn Bryant-Donham alleged Till accosted her
and exited the store. Bryant-Donham followed Till out so she could retrieve a pistol
from a car and upon Bryant-Donham’ s exit, Till whistled at her.
Saturday - August 27, 1955 - Evening: | a b lack teen ager, entered
Bryant’s Grocery & Meat Market in Money, Mississi ppi.! Iwas verbally
confronted by Roy Bryant about being from Chicago. I
3
related that a similar inciden t (likely the sam e instance) occurred on this night and she
told Roy Bryant that the boyf
confrontation ended.
wasn’t the right person and the
Sometime between Wednesday - August 24, 1 955 and Saturday - August, 27. 1955 -
Dusk] 1 a black teenager, was walking n orth from Money. Mississip pi,
when J.W. Milam, Roy Bryant, J.W. Washington and[ [came
wasn’t the right person anc
was released.
2
up behind him in a pickup truck. Washington, at Roy Bryant’s direction, tookl |
and threw him in the truck. I < told Roy Bryant tha | ~|
idl
Sunday - August 28. 1955 - 2:30 a.nv. Roy Bryant and J.W. Milam came to Mose
Wright’s home, east of Money, Mississippi, looking for the boy that “did the talking”
in Money, Mississippi. Till was taken from the home and someone with a “lighter
voice than a man’s” identified Till as the right person as they left.
Sunday - August 28. 1955 - Time Unknown. Early Morning: Roy Bryant. J .W.
Milam and a man named Kimbrell brought Till to I [ at
Bryant’s Grocery & Meat Market in Money, Mississippi.
land
Sunday - August 28, 1955 - Time Unknown. Early Morning:
Leslie Milam were awakened by either J.W. Milam or Roy Bryant,
overheard Leslie Milam telling whomever to take the boy back where they got him.
Sunday - August 28. 1955 - 6:00 - 7:00 a,ni.: Willie Reed observed four white men
and three black men in a truck with Till entering Leslie Milam’s farm on the Clint
Shurden Plantation outside of Drew, Mississippi. Reed then heard the sounds of
someone being beaten inside a bam.
Sunday - August 2S, 1955 - 6:30-7:00 a.m.: Willie Reed came to Mandy
Bradley’s home. Bradley observed four white men and a truck by a bam at Leslie
Milam ’s farm. One of the men was tall and bald.
37
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contents are not to be distributed outside your agency.
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Sunday- August 28. 1955 - B:0Qa.m.: Add Reed walked past a shed and an oat bin
on Leslie Milam’s farm and observed Leslie Milam and another man there.
Sunday - August 28. 1 955 - Early Morning: ^
and
observed a
fire in a barrel outside of J.W. Milam’s home in Glendora, Mississippi.
Sunday - August 28. 1955 - Morning: I I l observed
Otha Johnson Jr., Levi “Too Tight” C ollins, and J.W. Milam with Milam’s truck at
Milam’s gas station/store in Glendora. |saw that something was under a
tarpa ulin in the bed of t he truck and blood was dripping from the bed of the truck.
When l las ked abo ut the blood, J.W . Milam threatened him. Milam
called for a man f I knew as | | to join the group, they drove to the
Glendora Cotton Gin and then departed town.
Sunday - August 28. 1 955 - 10:00 a.m.: Levy “Too Tight” Collins paid l
| 25 cents to clean blood out of the back of J.W. Milam’s truck while it was
parked by Milam’s gas station/store in Glendora.
Sunday - August 28. 1955 - 2:00 p.m.: Leflore County Sheriff George Smith
questioned Roy Bryant about Till’s disappearance. Bryant admitted to taking Till
from Mose Wright’s home and bringing him to Carolyn Bryant-Donham at the store
in Money. He further claimed that Till was then released. Bryant was placed under
arrest.
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Monday - August 29. 1955 - Time Unknown: J.W. MiLam appeared at the Leflore
County Jail. Milam talked with Deputy John Ed Cothran and admitted to taking Till
from Mose Wright’s home, taking him to Money, Mississippi and letting him go.
Milam was placed under arrest.
TRobert” Hodges
Wednesday - August 31. 1955 - 6:30 - 7:00 a.m.:
discovered a body floating in the Tallahatchie River north of Phillip, Mississippi.
The body was later identified as being Emmett Till.
Wednesday - August 3 1 . 1955: Till’s body was recovered from the Tallahatchie
River and transported to the Century Burial and Funeral Home in Greenwood,
Mississippi. It was later transported to Chicago for viewing, a funeral and burial.
38
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B. Sequence of Events:
J I
c 1. Saturday/Sunday - August 20-21, 1955: Emmett Till, Mose Wright and)
d eparted Chicago, Illinois via train and arrived in Mississippi. Till and | "j were
scheduled to return to Chicago two weeks later. Till’s mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, had given Till
his deceased father’s ring prior to his leaving Chicago. 50 ’ 3l :i2
2. Wednesday - August 24, 1955:
SUN MOON
Begin Civil
Twilight
5:03 a.m.
Moonset on the
Preceding Day
9:53 p.m.
Sunrise
5:29 a.m.
Moonrise
12:17 p.m.
Sunset
6:37 p.m.
Moonset
10:34 p.m.
End Civil Twilight
7:03 p.m.
Moonrise on the
Following Day
1:11 p.m,
.
Weather
High Temperature
92 degrees
Low Temperature
71 degrees
Precipitation
None
Meteorological Light and Weather Data
All moon and light data used throughout this report was obtained from the United States Naval Observatory,
Astronomical Applications Department. Weather data used throughout this report was obtained from the Greenwood
Commonwealth newspaper. 53
a. August 24. 195$ - 8:00 p.m. - Money. Mississippi: Till, his cousins, and
members of the Wright family traveled to Money, Mississippi and visited Bryant’s Grocery & Meat
Market. With Till were
was
Maurice Wright (deceased) and Curtis Jones (deceased). Also at the store that evening
the |
and
} Upon arriving several black
persons were already present at the store on the front porch, playing checkers. Till entered the store
50 Death of Innocence, The Story of The Hate Crime That Changed America, Maime Till-Mobley and Christopher
B enson. 2003
Misc o/s
J Moon and Light Data. April 14, 200 5 Q
ST
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alone, followed shortly thereafter by his cousin,
with Till. Shortly after Till and
well. Upon
who entered the store and came out
exited as
exited the store
exit. Till whistled.
• Carolyn Bryant-Donham: During the trial of J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant for the
*
murder of Emmett Till, Bryant-Donham testified on behalf of the defense, out of the
presence of the jury. Bryant-Donham stated that on the evening of August 24, 1955
she was tending the store alone. Her sister-in-law, Juanita Milam, was in the living
quarters at the rear of the store, taking care of the Milam and Bryant children. At
about 8:00 p.m., a "nigger man came in the store and he stopped there at the candy
case." Bryant-Donham waited on the customer, but did not recall at the time of her
testimony what he had purchased. Bryant-Donham placed the item oh the candy case
and held her right hand out for the money. Instead of taking the money from her hand,
the customer "caught my hand", holding her hand by grasping all the fingers in the
palm of his hand with a strong grip. When he grabbed her hand he asked "How about
a date, baby?" Bryant-Donham "jerked" her hand loose and turned to go to the back
of the store. The customer followed her down the counter to the cash register,
"caught" her by the waist with his hands and said, "What's the matter, baby? Can't
you take it?" Bryant-Donham, with difficulty, freed herself from his grasp. He then
stated, "You needn't be afraid of me" and used language Bryant-Donham did not use,
including “one unprintable word”, and "with white women before." Bryant-Donham
stated this incident left her “just scared to death.” About that time "this other nigger
came in the store and got him by the arm", telling the customer "come on and let's go".
The customer left the store unwillingly, stating as he went out "Good-by". Upon the
40
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customer’s leaving Bryant-Donham “called out” to Juanita Milam "to watch me" and
Bryant-Donham ran out the door to Juanita Milam's car to retrieve her [Bryant-
Donham’s] pistol. When Bryant-Donham exited the front of the store, she saw the
customer again, "standing by one of the posts on the front porch" and "He whistled
and then came out in the road." Bryant-Donham retrieved the pistol from under the
driver’s seat, turned around and observed the customer getting in a car. Juanita
Milam had been at the store so that Bryant-Donham would not be alone while her
husband, Roy Bryant, was in Brownsville, Texas taking a load of shrimp there from
New Orleans, Louisiana. 54
I described that when she “called
out to
that . .1 had screamed foi |
□
land screamed for|
□
“...as soon as he touched me 1 started screaming for | and the statements
made to her by the customer on this day had left her with the impression he would be
stated that during the incident she
back at a later time. Additionally,
had reached for a pistol which was normally kept underneath the store counter, but
the weapon was not there and she retrieved the pistol from under the driver’s seat of
vehicle, which had been driving. 55,56
also stated she was not the person who initially told Roy Bryant what had
happened in the store saying, “...I didn’t say anything and one of the reasons I, I
didn’t say, ever say anything more about it, was because I was afraid that, what I was
jw f
worried about was he’s gonna go find and beat him up.” And “...I told|
vhat
54 Appendix A - Transcript - State of Mississippi vs. J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant, Second District of Tallahatchie
County. Seventeenth InHinial District. Sentemhar 1QSS - Twhmmiv nfVra Rnv Rrvant. 75ft tn 777
Misc 0 fS
41
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had happened, 1 asked her not to tell because I didn't intend to tell Roy, because
I was afraid of what they would do /’ 51 * 58
Additionally, on this night
d>
recalled sleeping at
ome.
59
Recently,
incident occurred saying “I thought I was in Greenville.
stated she was not at the store when this
stated she “...would
did
not have been babysittin for her...” and that when Roy went out of town
not stay with
speculated that
saying “...I’m sure l didn’t, no.” and
may have made the story up stating “...the only way
I can figure it is that she did not want to take care of the store. She thought this wild
story would make Roy take care of the store instead of leavin’ her with the kids and
the store. That is a f [p oint of view.” “. . .the only thing to me that would upset
her would be if she wanted Roy to stay at the store more. A review of Juanita
Milam's trial testimony reveals she did not make any statements, nor was she
questioned about, the incident at the store or her presence at Bryant’s Grocery &
Meat Market on the day Till whistled at Carolyn Bryant-Donham. 60,61
stated that Till had not been in Bryant’s Grocery & Meat
Market prior to Wednesday, August 24, 1955. On that day ] | Till,]
into the store alone, or as
and others went to the store. Till went
Jwas leaving, witlj [entering the store
“ Appendix A - Transcript - State of Mississippi vs. J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant, Second District of Tallahatchie Misc O/S
County. Seventeenth Judicial District. September 1955 - Testimony of Mrs. J W. Milam, 211 to 231
42
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as Till finished his purchase. “...Maurice told me to go in behind him and make sure
he didn’t say anything that he shouldn’t have, but 1 don’t know if he said anything
before I got there, I don’t know. But while I was in there, he didn’t. He paid for his
items and we left together, we walked out calmly, I didn’t think anything was wrong
at the time...” [did not grab Till and pull him out of the store.
Jv;
as not yelling or screaming when they left and everything appeared
normal. Shortly after Till and | [ exited the store
exited as well. When
]
[exited. Till whistled. Everyone knew Till's
whistling was trouble so they ran to the car and left town. 62 ‘ 63
advised that on a Wednesday eveningj ~*~j
[
Maurice Wright, Till and approximately three other family members
went into Money, Mississippi to Bryant's Grocery & Meat Market. | |went into
the store just prior to Till, and j | exited the store as Till was entering,
observed Till exiting the store with|
nothing was unusual about their exit.
they didn’t appear rushed and
exiting shortly
thereafter and Till whistled. Everyone knew Till's whistling was trouble so they ran
for their car and left Money, Mississippi and went home to Mose Wright’s
house. 64 - 65 ’ 66
• I
]
advised that on a Wednesday Till,
Maurice Wright and
Nisc
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| | went to Money, Mississippi and visited Bryant's Grocery & Meat Market.
When the group arrived at Bryant's Grocery & Meat Market, there were about seven
other black people already in front of the store. Prior to Till going into the store,
several of the group dared Till to say something to the white woman in the store
because Till had shown them a photograph of a white woman in his wallet (the kind
came out of the
of photograph that comes in a new wallet),
store heading toward her car and Till whistled,
at a bad move by the checker player . 67, 68
believes Till was whistling
stated he was at the store on the day that Till whistled at
and was present when Till whistled. 69
A confidential source, hereinafter referred to asl
• Confidential Source
advised that ) "[ was already present at Bryant’s Grocery & Meat Market when Till
arrived with his cousins. | [ observed Till entering the store, purchasing bubble
gum from [and exiting the store with
without incident.
didn’t hear
accosting
[ yelling or screaming and did not observe Till
in any way. Following Till’s exit |~ "[ recalled a whistle
occurring but no other details about it | [ observed Till, Wright and others
getting into a vehicle and the vehicle leaving. When the incident occurred, the sun
had set and it was dark outside. 70
44
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• Note: Till’s surviving relatives.
do not recal i j j be mg present at the store during this incident.
• Curtis Jones (deceased): Jones and his cousins snuck out of church to go to
Bryant’s Meat Market and Grocery on this day and Jones was present at the store
during the whistling incident Jones recalled Till having a picture of a white girl in
his wallet. Additionally, someone challenged Till about saying something to the
white woman in the store prior to Till entering the store . 72
d
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• Note:
anc
stated Jones was not
present at the store when the above noted incident occurred.
Additionally,! Advised Jones recanted his statements prior to his
death and apologized to Mamie Till-Mobley.
73
45
Misc O/S
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3. Saturday - August 27, 1955:
SUN MOON
Begin Civil Twilight
5:05 a m.
Moonrise on the
Preceding Day
2:02 p.m.
Sunrise
5:31 a.m.
Moonset
12:08 a, m.
Sunset
6:33 p,m.
Moonrise
2:49 p,m.
End Civil Twilight
6:59 p.m.
Moonset on the
Following Day
t :00
Weather
High Temperature
86 degrees
Low Temperature
7 1 degrees
Precipitation
None
Meteorological, Light and Weather Data
a. August 27, 1955 - Daytime - Money. Mississippi: Roy Bryant, who had
been hauling a load of shrimp to Brownsville, Texas earlier in the week, returned home to Money,
Mississippi,
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] In a recent interview.
recalled that on
the morning prior to Bryant’s arrest he was home. “Well I just remember that when
he came back, I didn’t tell him about it [the incident at the store when the black
customer had accosted
and he waited a long time and he asked me
didn’t I have something I wanted to tell him and I told him no...” “...he was really
mad at me.” recalled that Roy Bryant was angry and harsh and she
then recalled she gave Roy Bryant a
told him what had occurred.
46
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detailed account of the black customer grabbing her hand, grabbing her waist and
74
how she had screamed foi
to come and help her.
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b. August 27, 1955 - Evening - Money, Mississippi:
=c'
lived near Money, Mississippi, and had just returned to
Mississippi from a summer vacation trip to Chicago, Illinois. I (entered Bryant’s
Grocery & Meat Market, accompanied by his uncle and his mother. When he entered
the store, Roy Bryant andj
were inside. Roy Bryant asked
| { where he | ~| was on “that Thursday or Friday or something...” “I didn’t
know what the devil he was talkin’ about, so he, he acted like he wanted to do
something to me. ( mother intervened. . . “and she said what’s goin’on? And
ah, he just started out off and he say you all got to teach this boy how to say I said
yes sir, no sir.” At about the same time j ] said something to
Roy Bryant that | ] could not hear. The next day j^ ~| father went and told
their landowner about the incident. The landowner went to find out if Roy Bryant
had a problem with | ~| and learned that Roy Bryant was in jail for kidnaping
Preacher Wright’s grandson the night before. 75
On the evening prior to Till’s kidnaping, a black boy
entered Bryant’s Grocery & Meat Market and Roy Bryant was aggressively quizzing
76
the boy. Initially,
However, in another interview
did not recall exact details about the incident.
recalled . .1 know that there was a
lady and her little boy or her grandson or somebody was in the store and, I don’t
Misc O/S
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know, Roy said something to 4 em, and I remember telling him to leave 1 him alone that*
77
you know, that wasn’t him”, meaning it wasn’t Emmett Till.
Sometime between the incident at the store and Till’s kidnaping, at
walked north, out of Money, Mississippi, on the road home to his
| | had been to a store in the town of Money and
about dusk,!
house on
had purchased some syrup (molasses) and snuff, which he was taking home. A truck
pulled up behind] |and stopped. In the cab of the truck were Roy Bryant; J. W.
and in the back of the truck was
Milam;
J.W. Washington, a black man [possibly Johnny B. Washington]. Roy Bryant
instructed Washington to throw | | into the back of the pickup truck and
| came out of the truck and told Bryant "that’s
Washington did so.
not the nigger! That’s not the one.” Roy Bryant said “who?
responded “That’s the]
him.
]boy. That’s not him, but he was there with, with
also said “Roy, I keep telling ya, that’s not the one.”
Roy Bryant then instructed Washington to throw! loff the truck. Washington did
so, breakin;
Jtop, front teeth off . 78
• Confidential Sourc o confidential source, hereinafter referred to as|
79
TO
Mis c O/S
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c. August 27. 1955 - Evening - Money. Mississippi
[also recently advised that .J.W;
came to that back door and got Roy and they left and I was there all night by myself.
Alone. With two boys.” 80 And “Well, after he left with J.W., I know the boys were
asleep. I had them on the bed there in that first room. I know I was just scared -to
death, siftin' there, didn’t know what, and I think that was the first time I’d ever been
alone at night there.” 81
d. August 27. 1955 - Night - Glendora. Mississippi:
• Otha Johnson, Jr., also known as Oso (deceased): Johnson, a black male,
| that on the night of August 27, 1955 Johnson
related to his
was at J.W. Milam’s store in Glendora, Mississippi and a group of white men were
sitting around drinking when they decided to take Till. Otha Johnson, Jr. drove J.W.
Milam and others throughout the night during the events surrounding Till’s kidnaping
and murder.
82
was gambling at a place in Glendora, Mississippi when J.W.
Milam, Roy Bryant and Tallahatchie County Sheriff H.C. Strider came asking for
|(possibly
directions to Mose Wright’s house.
indicated that he saw
Too Tight (likely Leroy Collins) and Oudie B. Brown with
Milam, Bryant and Strider in Glendora. 83
4 ?
Mi sc O/S
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• Note:
when
^Iso states in the interview he accompanied
J transported Till’s body, ] [ account of the injuries to Till
are not consistent with the physical findings of the Medical Examiner.
4. Sunday - August 28, 1955:
84
SUN MOON
Begin Civil Twilight
5:06 a.m..
Moonrise on the
Preceding Day
3:23 p.m.
Sunrise
5:22 a.m.
Moonset
1 :00 a.m.
Sunset
6:32 p.m.
Moonrise
3:32 p.m.
End Civil Twilight
6:58 p.m.
Moonset on the
Following Day
1:56 a.m, !
Weather
High Temperature
91 degrees
Low Temperature
73 degrees
Precipitation
None
Meteorological, Light and Weather Data
a. August 28, 1955 - 2:30 a.m. - Money. Mississippi: At approximately 2:30
a.m. Till was taken from Mose Wright's home on the Grover C. Frederick farm. Present in the home
were Mose. Wright (deceased); his wife Elizabeth Wright (deceased); grandson Curtis Jones
and Bryant for Till’s murder. The person’s names are depicted in the rooms in which they were
sleeping when Till was taken from the home.
Mi sc o/s
50
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Pear Screen Porch
-HMUIL/tH
Kitchen
id
Dining Room
Storage Area
"Alley Way"
Emrmrtt Till
&
Curtis Jones
L-
1
Elizabeth
a
Maurics WHght
2
Ot.
Wricjht
, 1
i__
i I
J
vj
Front Screen Porch
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-Ulilllliu k 1 1 1 1 1 4 1 4 1 1 1 1
iiiiiMMimumMiiiiMF
• Mose Wright (deceased), also known as Preacher: Wright testified that at about
2:00 a.m., someone came to the front door of the home saying, "Preacher Preacher".
Wright asked who it was and the person responded, "This is Mr. Bryant. I want to
talk to you and that boy." Wright opened the door of the home and found J.W. Milam
"standing there at the door with a pistol in his right hand and he had a flashlight in his
left hand." Additionally, another man was "standing at the screen door, and Mr.
Bryant was standing kind of out away from the door." Milam asked Wright if he had
51
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"two boys there from Chicago" and Wright responded "Yes, Sir." Milam then said "I
want that boy that done the talking down at Money."
Wright started to lead Milam and Bryant to the bedroom Till was sleeping in
and Milam stated "If this is not the right boy, then we are going to bring him back and
put him in the bed." When they approached Till's bed, Milam "said for him to get
up." Till "got up and dressed. He sat on the side of the bed and dressed.” After that
"...they started out, then he asked me if I know anybody there and I told him, ‘No, Sir.
I don't know you.’ And then he said to me, ‘How old are you?’ And then I said ‘Sixty
four.’ And then he said, ‘Well, if you know any of us here tonight, then you will
never live to get to be Sixty five.’"
As Milam, Bryant and Till were exiting the house they walked through
Wright's bedroom, where his wife was present. "She had gotten up out of bed, and
then he said to her, ‘You get back in bed, and I mean, I want to hear the springs.’"
Wright's wife "...said that we will pay you whatever you want to charge if you will
just release him. She said that we would pay them for whatever he might have done
if they would just let him go." Milam and Bryant did not respond to her.
After exiting the home, Wright stood at the screen porch door and observed a
car to be "parked towards Money." Before Milam and Bryant entered.the car with
Till, "They asked if this was the boy, and someone said ‘Yes’". When asked if the
voice was that of a man or a woman, Wright replied, "It seemed like it was a lighter
voice than a man's." After receiving the response from the person in the car, they
"...drove off towards Money."
52
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Wright could not identify what type of automobile was used by Milam and
Bryant. The vehicle was operated without headlights. After the vehicle departed,
Wright "...stood on the porch there for maybe twenty minutes or more."
When asked if anyone else, with the exception of Milam and Bryant, was
there at the time of Till’s kidnaping, Wright responded "There was one man who
stood there at the screen door." "...he was standing kind of with his head down like
this here peering. He was trying to hide, it looked like.” "He acted like a colored
man.”
Wright stated he did not see Till, or anyone else, getting into a car and didn't
see anyone in the car when it drove off. Wright did not observe headlights, tail lights
or interior lights on the car. Wright was asked about the voice he heard out by the car
being the voice of one of the three men. Wright responded, "It was just a voice.
They took him out there, and somebody said, ‘Is this him?’ and then a voice said,
‘Yes.’ But it wasn’t one of them.” Wright could not tell if the vehicle used to take
Till from his home was a truck or a car because of the darkness.
Wright described Till as having "...stammering speech. Sometimes he couldn't
get a word out.” Additionally, Till weighed about one hundred fifty pounds and "He
looked like a man."
Wright testified that when Milam and Bryant came into his home there were
no lights on in the home and no lights were turned on. The only lighting was the
flashlight carried by Milam. Wright believed Till was sleeping in his shorts and
maybe a shirt. When told to get up and put his clothes on, Till put on a shirt, trousers
and shoes. Wright described in detail where each individual in the home was
53
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contents are not to be distributed outside you* agency.
LAW ENFORCEMENT SENSITIVE
sleeping on the night Till was kidnaped and the structural layout of the home. Wright
stated he did not see Till or anyone else getting into a car and didn't see anyone in the
car when it drove off.
Wright described that following Till being taken from his home he went, got
gasoline, "went to a store" and returned home about 8:00 a.m. 85, 86
| ( The night Till was kidnaped, the entire Wright family went into
Greenwood, Mississippi. The family returned home and j ~| went to bed. Till
and | [ were asleep in the same bed when, “...I heard this noise ah... ruckus
going on in the room, that’s when I woke up and I saw ah.. .Bryant, I recognized him,
I saw Milam, but I didn’t know who he was, and he had the gun, and ah. ..it was
ah. . .automatic, at the time I said it was a .45, which, that’s the only automatic we
knew about.” “I kind of raised up to see what was going on. He (Milam) told me to
bg lay back down and go back to sleep.” . .that’s when they made Emmett get up and
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•put his clothes on, and during thattime | | (Elizabeth Wright) - | | was
ah., .begging them not to - to ah., .take him, they offered them money..,.” “Milam he
was, he was forceful and was telling Emmett to hurry up, put his clothes on, | |
(Mose Wright) was begging not to take him, then they said well we not gonna, we
just gonna take him up the road and just whip him...” The two men took Till and left.
M Appendix A - Transcript - State of Mississippi vs. J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant, Second District of Tallahatchie
C ounty. Sevente enth Judicial District, September 1955 - Testimony of Mr. Mose Wright, 4 to 62
Countv. Seveny
Page 'Detective, October 25, 1955,|
Misc o/s
1 Saw Them Tak e Emmett Till - The tape-recorded story by Emmett Till's Uncle Moses Wright, From
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Irecalled a ring that Til] had worn and had allowed j~ [to wear for a
87,88
while. After | ~| retumed the ring. Till constantly wore it, never taking it off.'
• | On the Saturday following the incident at Bryant's Grocery &
Meat Market, ) | Till, Maurice Wright, | ^ nd others went into
Greenwood, Mississippi. After returning home, everyone went to bed wit H I
and Maurice Wright sleeping in the same bed. | fc woke to voices and someone
was asking about ”a fat boy from Chicago, and ah. . .1 said oh my goodness. . . .the
first thing I said. I’m - I’m getting ready to die.” Two men came into his bedroom,
“...when they stepped in there I saw that pistol and their flashlight...” “...I remember
and Emmett
them saying they looking for a fat boy, and at that time
was kind of chunky, so they passed on by and they went to the next room. . .1
i
could hear ‘em talking, and I can’t remember exactly what the conversation was, I - 1
think I remember one thing he wanted to put his socks and - ah. . .he was saying yes
and no, yeah, no, and they was cursing, they were very upset over that...” After the
men took Till, there was silence in the house and “nobody talked to
anybody.” 89 ' 90 ' 91
hear or see any of the events that transpired.
did not awaken during the incident and did not
advised that I Mose
33
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Wright, related to him that Mose Wright may have heard Johnny B. Washington’s
voice at the Wright home the night Till was kidnaped . 92
• Curtis Jones (deceased): Jones, who was sleeping at the time of the abduction,
stated he “was awakened by a group of mens in the house.” “So I woke up, rubbing
my eyes, you know, and I Seen all these white guys, you know, standing around, some
of ‘em had shotguns and stuff. And it like this should of scared me, but, I went back
to sleep before they left. I went back to sleep, and when I woke up the next, uh,
morning I thought it was a head, was a dream .” 93
• Confidential Source! |
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members of his family and members of the
Wright household had been to Greenwood, Mississippi earlier in the evening. On the
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way home “...when we came back outta Greenwood there was another guy rode with
us lived down the road farther. We seen Mose Wright at this little store on the
place...” “...Getting’ gas that late at night. But we ain’ think ta stop an’ ask Mose
what was wrong.” 96
‘Old man Mose Wright come there to the house that Sunday
morning. . “. . .and told us they got Emmett. An’ den me and Mose jump in the car
and went down to Money lookin’ for ‘em.’ { further explained .So I let
| p ut in | | house. Let[ ~|and Maurice at Mose Wright house, let them off
an’ then turn around an’ come on back. I went an' in the house an’ I was sittin’ on
the side of the bed...” . . An’ Mose Wright come up an’ said uh, 1 I they took my
boy. . .” “. . .Then me an’ Mose Wright hop in the car an’ we went up there in Money
| We went up there lookin’ for 'im, so we didn’t see ‘em, turn around
an’ come back...” “...We didn’ get out. So we come on back...” Mose Wright told
that Milam and Bryant were there when Till was taken and a .; woman
was in the background. . .” and “For a fact there was two people back there he
said.” 97 ' 98
I
stated
Johnnie B.
Washington, was at home with her the night Till Was kidnaped and murdered,
b. August 28. 1955 - Early Morning - Money. Mississippi :
99
recently stated that sometime in the
early morning hours, before daylight, someone who sounded like a black person came
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to the residential entrance of the store (the back door) and knocked on the door.
stated, she was scared because she was alone with her' two children
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and did not answer the door. l00 ’ L91, 102
Additionally,
advised that she was at home in Money,
Mississippi witt£
Jwhen sometime during the night Roy Bryant, J.W.
Milam and KimbreU appeared at the home/store with Emmett Till. “...I think they
came back and I think that KimbreU man was, was with, with "em...” “...I think it
happened pretty much like he, like they said. I think they probably asked me who, if
I believe. Because I really think no matter
T “I think he (Roy
I thought
Bryant) told me he was gonna take him back.” l0J * I04 - l05 ’ 106 : ,
c. August 28. 1955 - Early Morning - Clint Shurden Plantation. Drew.
Mississippi:
advised that on the night which
later learned was the night that Emmett Till had been kidnaped, J.W.
Milam and/or Roy Bryant came to their house sometime after midnight. While
did not see the men, she heard one of the two talking t d
and hearc£
Leslie Milam, tell the man something to the effect that "they
Mi sc 0/$
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needed to get away from here and take him back to where they got him."
llater realized they had been talking about Emmett Till. Leslie Milam came
back ( T after J.W. Milam and/or Roy Bryant appeared at the house.
In a subsequent interview
107
^recalled the individuals who
on this night as being both Roy Bryant and J.W. Milam.
also reiterated that Leslie Milam
also stated.
“now what he did that day, I don’t know. After he left the house. . .” . .cause
he was gone.” i08> 109
d. August 28. 1955 - Day Break - Money, Mississippi :
Sometime around daybreak, |went
Melvin Campbell,
down the street and utilized a telephone to call
in Minter City, Mississippi, to ascertain the whereabouts of Roy Bryant. Campbell
they had been playing poker all night and Roy Bryant would be
told
home later. u0 * m ’ M2
did not recall a telephone call from
to
on this morning. Additionally,
could not
recall if Melvin Campbell had been home or away from home the previous night. 1 13
37
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e. August 28. 1955 - 6:00 am - Clint Shurden Plantation. Drew, Mississippi:
• Willie Reed: Reed, a witness in the 1955 prosecution, testified that on Sunday,
August 28, 1955, Reed saw J.W. Milam when Milam was coming to a well. at Leslie
Milam's farm. Reed is familiar with Leslie Milam’s farm because Reed lives with his
grandfather. Add Reed, on the Clint Shurden Plantation, in a home just across the
bayou from Leslie Milam’s farm. Sometime between six and seven o'clock in the
morning, Reed left his home to go to Glenn Patterson’s store. When going from his
home to Patterson’s store, Reed had to pass by Leslie Milam's place, where there was
a green bam with doors. As Reed was walking, a white over green, 1955 Chevrolet
truck passed him. Reed testified he saw four white men in the cab of the truck, three
black men on the sides of the back of the truck and a black boy sitting down in the
bed of the truck. Reed identified Till as the boy in the back of the truck from a
photograph he saw in the newspaper and which he was shown at trial. Reed testified
he was unable to see the three black men in the bed of the truck with Till well enough
to identify them. Reed then saw the truck parked in front of a bam. Reed heard
someone hollering and it sounded like someone was whipping someone in the bam.
After passing the bam, Reed went to Mandy Bradley's house and told her what he had
heard. Reed then went to the well to get Bradley a bucket of water. While at the well,
Reed could hear “some licks like somebody was whipping somebody” and he could
hear someone hollering from inside the bam. J.W. Milam then came from the bam to
the well and got a drink of water. Reed recalled J.W. Mi lam having a pistol on his
belt. After leaving the well, Reed went to the store. On his way home from the store,
Reed did not hear or see anything and the truck was gone. Reed knows Leslie Milam
60
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and J.W. Milam. Reed had seen J.W. Milam on about three or four occasions prior to
August 28th. Reed had never seen Emmett Till prior to that Sunday. When asked,
"...you don't know whether that was Emmett Till or not, do you?" Reed replied that
Till favored the picture he had just looked at. Reed had been in the bam on one
occasion, did not know who had control of the bam, but stated Leslie Milam lives
next to the bam. 114
In contemporary interviews, Reed identified only two white men and two
black men accompanying Till in the truck as it entered the farm. Reed identified the
white men as Milam and Bryant and the two black men as Levi “Too Tight” Collins
andHubbard. 115 ’ 116 ’ 117 ' 118
• Add Reed (deceased): Reed was sixty-five years old in 1955 and the grandfather
of Willie Reed. They lived together on the Clint Shurden Plantation. Reed's home
was just across a bayou from Leslie Milam’s home. On Sunday, August 28th, at
about 8:00 o'clock in the morning, Reed left his home, walking east, turned north,
crossed a bayou and crossed Leslie Milam's place. Reed passed by a shed and an oat
bin on Leslie Milam's place and observed two men, Leslie Milam and another man
Reed did not know. Reed also observed a pickup truck to be parked at a building.
Willie Reed had left home prior to Add Reed leaving the house and Willie Reed had
not yet returned home when Add Reed departed. 119
114 Appendix A - Transcript - State of Mississippi vs. J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant, Second District of Tallahatchie
roimtv Seventepnrh InUif-ial Hkn-irl Ontpmhpr 1955 . TVxaimnm/ nf Mr Willi* 2 1 0 tO 245
Misc O/S
— Hjjpeuuix a - 1 raiistTipi - muu* w Mississippi vs. j. w . ivniam unu K.uy Bryant, smmd District of Tallahatchie
County, Seventeenth Judicial District, September 1955 - Testimony of Mr. Add Reed, 245 to 249
61
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1
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* Mary “Amanda” “Amandy” “Mandy” Bradley (deceased): In 1955, Bradley
was fifty years old and lived on Leslie Milam's place. Leslie Milam's house could be
j
seen from Bradley’s home. Bradley knew Willie Reed, who lives south of Leslie
Milam, on Clint Shurden's land. On Sunday, August 28 Ul , between six-thirty and
seven o'clock a m., Willie Reed came to Bradley's house. Reed mentioned to Bradley
i
something unusual he had seen or heard that morning and Bradley looked out the * 1
window. Bradley saw four white men and a truck by the bam. Bradley did not know j
who the four white men were. The men were coming in and out from the. bam; one )’
man went to the well and got a drink of water then returned to the bam. The man
who got the drink of water was tall and bald headed. Bradley saw the truck when I
|
they backed it up under the shed, the same shed they were going back and forth from
and Bradley saw the truck as it drove away. 130
• Confidential Sourc ^ | A confidential source, hereinafter referred to as
that Glenn Patterson (deceased) revealed to | [ that the pickup truck containing
Till’s body passed by Patterson’s house as it left the Clint Shurden Plantation.
Patterson also revealed that Patterson believed Till was shot while at Leslie
Milam's farm, 12 *
advised that on the day following Till's kidnaping,
“I was, ah > playin' beside the road and I saw Mr., ah, Mylam's (sic) truck coming by
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110 Appendix A - Transcript - State of Mississippi vs. J.W, Milam and Roy Bryant, Second District of Tallahatchie
County. Seventeenth Judicial District. September 1955 - Testimony of Amandv Bradley. 250 to 258
1 I Misc O/S
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and it had a — had a cover over the door we called a tarpaulan (sic), had a tarp over it,
and I heard somebody hollerin’ on the truck, but I didn’t see nobody.” 122
[described his home as being located near
In a later interview
[
also stated he b6
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west of Money on the way to
saw Milam’s truck pass him, with Milam and Branch [Bryant] inside, on either a
Tuesday or Wednesday and that it could not have been a Sunday, j [ also
stated the truck passed him about lunch time. 123
f . August 28, 1955 - before daylight - Glendora. Mississippi
In 1955
and her family lived in a
home that was located near
Sometime in the middle of the nighi and her sister
[
I , Ot)
were at home, sitting at a window, trying to get some air, when they noticed b7c
a fire burning in a barrel behind J.W. Milam’s home. |
someone had burned something in the barrel. j“
Jlater learned that
jlater saw shoes that had
burned in the fire and was told the shoes were Emmett Till’s. m ' 125
| [recalled “I remember the shoe. Like at night my sister an’ I
was in the bed an’ you know you had your windows up down south. “An’ we say ^7c
like maybe two or three guys, back then you would bring your garbage up a tall barrel
you...” “...They put somethin’ in that an’ set it on fire . j ) later learned it was
Till’s shoe which had been burned. I2t>
122
(23
124
(25
(2fr
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g. August 28. 1955 - earlv morning - Glendora. Mississippi
at the time, recalled many years later,
that he and is father, who is now deceased, walked past J.W. Milam’s store on a
Sunday morning. Upon passing the store, jsaw that Milam’s 1953- 1955
GMC pickup truck was parked by the store, As | "[ passed between the store and
the truck, he noticed something under a tarpaulin, in the bed of the truck. A' black
man was sitting on the side of the bed of the truck with a foot on the tarpaulin.
Another black man was standing beside the truck. | [ recalled the names of the
men as “Oso” and “Too Tight” but could not recall which of the men was in the truck
and which was by the truck. Blood was running out of the bed of the truck and
pooling on the ground.
father was present. About the time | R eached
the truck, J.W. Milam came from the store. When Milam appeared, | "[ father
said something to Milam about the blood coming out of the truck. Milam stated he
had killed a deer. | | father pointed out that deer season was not in and Milam
responded by pulling ) [ father over to the truck and lifting the tarpaulin to
show l I father what was underneath ! | was not able to see what was
under the tarpaulin, but heard J.W. Milam state, “This is what happens to smart
| father then grabbed jand dragged him to their house.
niggers.
also recalled many years later that he saw
coming toward the store from a nearby house.
64
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F.W. Milam was calling for ] | to hurry.
|saw Milam and the others drive off
in the truck to the Glendora Cotton Gin and then leave town. ,27 ' 128
who was
1
washing blood out of
with four friends when they saw “Too Tight” and
J.W. Milam’s green 1950s Chevrolet truck. “Too Tight” offered to pay | | and
his friend l | 35 cents each to wash the blood out of the truck for him and they did
so, | ^ believed this occurred one day during the week and not on a Sunday.
| [ iescribed washing out the blood “...I never seen lumps of blood look like
that. . . ” . .yeah, thick like jelly. Somebody else asked him. Where did all that
blood come from? And he said we killed a deer last night. . “You know ah, the
blood stain was still in the, the truck. And then ah, we washed and washed and we
couldn’t get it out...” 129
R ecalled, “...I was watering the flowers in the yard, and I
had to go to the, we used to cal 1 it the hydrant. , . but it was a faucet ...” “...1 can see it
in my mind, I see the truck over there, the green and white truck, and I can see J.W.
and I can see Leroy Collins, but that’s where I stop at. I can’t say it wa^
I think, or as...Oso was over there, but it wasn’t the two to my
knowledge.”
Jrecalled£
j Robert Walker Sr., told her he had seen them
washing blood out of a truck at J.W. Milam’s store on this morning. When asked
where the blood had come from, J.W. Milam stated he had gone hunting.
Misc o/s
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also state j | told her... “When they were washing the blood, they moved this
canopy, we used to call it a tarpaulin...” “...they moved it out the way and he saw
this shoe...” 130 ’’ 3 '
I I ^stated he was waiting outside the “gambling place”
with some other men when a girl nameq |appro ached and told
them that J.W. Milam had taken a boy, killed him and dumped his body in the river.
| witnessed | j pointing out to the group a shoe lying on the ground that.
132
according to “Too Tight” Collins, the boy [Till] had been wearing.
In a separate interview | [ stated he had been gambling at a juke joint in
Glendora, Mississippi on the night of Till’s murder and had been called to help a
did so, purchasin g | in£
girlfriend with a flat tire.
Mississippi with Melvin Campbell’s assistance and then returning to Glendora,
Mississippi. Once back in Glendora, Mississippi a man namec j ^ howed
1 I 1
and several other people a burned shoe, whichl paid was one of Emmett
Till’s shoes . 133
During all known interviews of j ~| re has denied any involvement in
Till’s kidnaping and murder.
• Oudie Brown (deceased): Brown related that on the morning after Till was killed
he was walking and “Too Tight” [Collins] was washing J.W. Milam’s truck out. “...I
looked down and I said what all that blood coming from. He laughed. The boy
laughed. That’s what he did. He said there’s a shoe there. There’s one of his shoes
Misc O/S
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here, I said Who? That’s the way I said it, I say Who? Emmett Till’s shoe. Now
that’s the way he said it.” Brown also recalled being with J.W. Milam on the day
Milam was arrested by the “high sheriff’ in Minter City, Mississippi. 134
h. August 28, 1955 - 2:Q0 p.m. - Money, Mississippi:
• George Smith (deceased): Smith was Sheriff of Leflore County. On Sunday,
August 28, 1955, at approximately 2:00 p.m., Smith arrived at Bryant’s Grocery &
Meat Market in the town of Money, Mississippi. Upon his arrival, he found that the
Bryant’s store was closed and Bryant was asleep in the back of the store. Smith
spoke with Roy Bryant, while seated inside Smith's car, outside Bryant's store in
Money, Mississippi. "I asked him why did he go down there and get that little nigger
boy, and he said that he went down and got him to let his wife see him to identify him,
and then he said that she said it wasn't the right one, and then he said that he turned
him loose" "in front of his store 1 ’. Bryant told Smith, they got Emmett Till at "Mose
Wright's". Bryant also told Smith "He said he went to some of his people - - 1 don't
remember just who he said now - - and he said he played cards there the rest of the
night." Smith arrested Bryant and took him to the jail in Greenwood, Mississippi,
where Bryant stayed “from that time on until he was brought to Tallahatchie
County..." 135
| - . - | Misc O/S
Appendix A - Transcript - State of Mississippi vs. J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant, Second District of Tallahatchie
County, Seventeenth Judicial District, September 1955 - Testimony of Mr. George Smith, $5 to 99 and 1 17 to 12$
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5. Monday - August 29, 1955:
a. Greenwood. Mississippi:
• John Ed Cothran: Cothran was a Deputy Sheriff for the Leflore County Sheriffs
Department. Cothran testified that he spoke with J. W. Milam in the Leflore County
jail, after Milam was arrested, on a Monday. "I asked him if they went out there and
got that tittle boy and if they had done something with him. And he said that they had
brought him up there to that store and turned him loose, there at Roy Bryant’s store.”
Milam told Cothran they had got the boy at "Mose Wright's." Milam farther told
♦ t -lit
Cothran "...they brought him up there and talked to him, and then they let him go."
stated “Well about all I remember is that
ah, J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant went to that old nigger house of Mose Wright, that
little boy Emmett’s granddaddy. Well I talked to him on several different occasions
when I was working that time. They never did mention nobody but Milam and
"jrecalled
Bryant...’
when Bryant and Milam were arrested.
stating “ . . .the Sunday evening me and him arrested Roy .at the store in Money,
and that was a Sunday evening. The Monday morning, me and the sheriff was sitting
in the sheriffs office and I looked out at the window and I said loo key yonder George.
He said oh dog gone let’s go get him....” .That’s Milam...” “...he come down
around there to see about his half brother. Well he got to see about him cause he
went right up there with him .” 137
136 Appendix A - Transcript - State of Mississippi vs. J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant, Second District of Tallahatchie
C ounty. Seventeenth Judicial District. September 1955 • Testimony of Mr. John Ed Cothran , 143, 144
^ bS '
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6, Wednesday - August 31, 1955:
a. August 31. 1955 - early morning - Pecan Point Area on the Tallahatchie
River, north of Philipp. Mississipp i:
Robert Hodges: Hodges testified he was
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fishing when he "...seen two knees and feet," about a mile from his house, on the left
side, going down river, in Tallahatchie County. The body was hung up on a snag.
Hodges reported finding the body to his father, who reported it to their land owner,
B.L. Mims, at about six thirty or seven o'clock in the morning. Later in the day,
Hodges, B.L. Mims, Deputy Sheriff Melton, Charlie Fred Mims and Hodges' father
went to the location of the body in two boats. Then "they brought the rope back there,
and then me and this other boy was in a boat, and Mr. Melton was there, and they had
the rope around the boy’s legs and then they hung it on there, and they had it on this
other boat, and then they carried it down the river and took it out on the other side
there." Upon pulling the body out onto the bank they found a gin fan to be attached
to the body with a piece of barbed wire that was wrapped around the neck. Hodges
described the body as "beaten pretty bad in the back.. .and hips,"... and the head was
"also gashed in on the side." Hodges witnessed the barbed wire being disconnected
from the gin fan, the placement of the body and gin fan in a boat and the boat
traveling to a landing. At the landing, Hodges observed Chester Miller, the
undertaker, arrive, place the body in a box, and place the box in the coach. Hodges
observed a silver ring to be on one of the body’s fingers. At trial Hodges was shown a
ring which was engraved "May 25, 1943”, with the engraved initials "L.T." and he
69
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advised the ring he was being shown looked like the ring he had seen, but he "didn't
get close enough to see the initials." 138
and the
‘sounds accurate,”
was interviewed in 2004 and 2005 regarding his testimony in 1955
and acknowledged that the transcript of his testimony
is currently a | | and has fished the Tallahatchie
River all of hts life. Additionally,
recalled that he had
[
]when he had been checking
] After
observing^
home and told his father and their land owner that he had£
^vent
lied
several people, traveling in one or two boats, to the body and they recovered it. The
body did not have any clothing on it and the main injuries to the body were to the
head.
marked on the aerial photograph depicted here the location where he
discovered Till’s body on August 31, 1955. l39, 140, 141
m Appendix A - Transcript - State of Mississippi vs. J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant, Second District of Tallahatchie
Countv. Seventeenth-Indicia! District. September 1955 - Testimony of Robert Hodges. 100 to 1 10
Misc O/S
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8 Farm Service Age ncy Photograph, April 14, 1957
Location marked byl I b6
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i
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I
was at home when
H
Arrived at home and advised him that| [had
been sent by
to assist in the recovery of a body that had been found in the Tallahatchie River.
b6
and f a boat from the | ~| farm and proceeded to a bend in the b7c
river, where they found a body, caught on a snag of debris. They floated the body to
a sandbar, placed it on a piece of visquine or other fabric, loaded it in the boat, and
proceeded north on the river to Fish Lake Landing. Upon arriving at Fish Lake
Landing l~ I departed almost immediately. U2
to get [
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b. August 31, 1955. Fish Lake Landing, on the Tallahatchie River, north of
Philipp. Mississippi:
• B.L. Mims (deceased): Testified that on August 31, 1955, Mims was told about a
body being found on the Tallahatchie River and he went down the river and found
’’him”. Accompanying Mims, in Mims’ boat, was Deputy Sheriff Garland Melton.
Accompanying Mims and Melton, in a second boat, was his brother, Fred Mims, and
Robert Hodges. Mims observed, "Well, we saw a person - - from his knee on down
and including his feet - - we saw that sticking up above the water. And we could tell
by looking at it that it was a colored person..." The body was hung up and they sent
one of the boats back to get a rope. Upon getting the rope, they pulled the feet
together, tied the rope to the ankles and pulled the body loose from the bottom. They
then towed the body downstream to a shallow bank, landed there, and pulled the body
out. Mims observed a gin fan to be attached to the body at the neck with barbed wire.
A Deputy Sheriff disconnected the weight [gin fan] from the body, they pulled the
body out, and placed the body and the weight in an extra boat. The extra boat was
attached to Mims' boat and Mims towed the boat with the body and the gin fan to a
landing. Upon arriving at the landing, the boat was pulled out of the water onto the
river bank. H3
• Note: During the course of the investigation it was determine
that the gin fan had been disposed of during the early 1970s.
143 Appendix A - Transcript - State ofMississippi vs. J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant, Second District of Tallahatchie
County, Seventeenth Judicial District, September 1955 - Testimony of B.L. Mims, 1 10 to 115
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Ring Taken From the Body and Identified as Tilt’s
Photograph from “Getting Away With Murder
The True Story of the Emmett Tilt Case" by Chris Crowe
• Chester A. Milter (deceased): Testified that Miller was an undertaker in
Greenwood, Mississippi. Miller and his helper, Simon Garrett, were summoned to
the Tallahatchie River, near Philipp, Mississippi, on August 31, 1955, to pick up a
body. Upon arriving at the scene, they found the body to be lying, face down, in a
boat. The boat was pulled up on the bank of the river. They turned the; body over and
discovered a silver ring on one of the body’s fingers. Miller identified a ring which
was inscribed ’’May 25, 1 943" and with the initials "L.T.", as the ring that was taken
off of the body by his helper (Simon Garrett]. Miller later gave the ring to Mose
Wright. Miller observed a metal wheel and a strand of barbed wire to be in the boat
with the body and the barbed wire was wrapped around the neck of the body. Mose
Wright identified the body to Miller as being the body of Emmett Till. After loading
the body into a casket shipping container, Miller transported the body to his funeral
home in Greenwood, Mississippi. At the funeral home, Mr. Strickland, a Greenwood
74
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Police Officer, took photographs of the body. Miller then prepared the body for
burial in Money, Mississippi, and transported the body to a cemetery there. The body
was not buried and Miller carried the body back to his funeral home in Greenwood,
Mississippi. He later delivered the body to an undertaker in Tutwiler, Mississippi.
Miller stated the body was not clothed when he observed it in the boat. Miller
described the body as approximately five foot four or five inches in height, weighing
approximately one hundred-fifty or one hundred-sixty pounds, “looked to be that of a
colored person" and "the flesh in the palm of the hand, well, it looked like it was the
body of a young person. And from certain parts of the body - well, in my experience
in handling those kinds of bodies, by certain parts of the body it looked like a youth
more so than a grown person or an older person.” Miller described what he saw of
the body as "the whole crown of his head, from here above (indicating with his hand)
was just crushed in." Miller also said "The crown of his head was just crushed out
and in, you know, and a piece of his skull just fell out there in the boat,' maybe three
inches long or maybe two and a half inches wide, something like that." "I saw a hole
in the skull," further describing the hole as "Oh, about — maybe half an inch square,
something like that", located about three- quarters of an inch above the right ear. The
other side of the head was "crushed on the other side. You couldn't tell too much it
was crushed so. And it was all cut up and gashed across the top there."' Miller said
the wounds he described were sufficient to cause death, but could not tell if the
wounds were caused before or after death or "in a car accident or otherwise..." 144
144 Appendix A - Transcript - State of Mississippi vs. J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant, Second District of Tallahatchie
County, Seventeenth Judicial District, September 1955 - Testimony of Chester Miller, 64 to 80 and 94 to 99
75
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• John Ed Cothran: Testified that on August 31,1 955, at about 10:00 a,m. he and
Mr. Weber, a Leflore County Deputy Sheriff, traveled to a place on the Tallahatchie
River, between Philipp and Macel, Mississippi, stopping en route at Mose Wright's
home to pick him up. Upon arriving, they found a body had been taken out of the
river and was in a boat on the river bank. Sheriff Strider, Sheriff Smith, and other
people were present. Chester Miller, the Negro undertaker, arrived a short time later.
Cothran witnessed the transfer of the body from the boat into a casket under the
supervision of Chester Miller. Cothran also witnessed Simon Garrett, Miller's helper,
remove a silver ring from a finger on the body. Garrett gave the ring to Mose Wright,
who carried it home, and who, in turn, gave it to Cothran. Cothran identified the ring
as being inscribed "May 25 , 1943" with the inscribed initials "L.T." Cothran
identified a metal gin fan which had been in the boat with the body and a piece of
barbed wire that had been attached to the body. Cothran described the condition of
the body as "his head was tom up pretty bad. And his left eye was about out, it was
all gouged out in there, you know. And right up in the top of his head, well, there
“was a hole knocked in the front of it there. And then right over his right ear - - well, I
wouldn't say it was a bullet hole..." Cothran further stated there was a small hole in
the head about an inch above the ear and he could not tell if the hole penetrated the
skull. Also the head had "a place knocked in on his forehead." Other parts of the
body did not appear to be mutilated. After arriving at the river, as they walked up to
the boat, Mose Wright said "I believe that's him". Cothran also heard Mdse Wright
76
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state "he didn't know about the ring at the time, but he said he would carry it out to
his house and ask his boy about it, that he would know." 145
stated he was at the river when Till’s
body was found, saying “Well they, they had him in a boat, they already pulled the
boat up to the bank when 1 got up there.” He described the injuries to the body as
“Oh it was in, it was in pretty bad shape. Now I don’t know ah, it’s been so long, I
tell ya how it’s just. I can’t remember. I know it was just the stinkinist thing I ever
saw.”
[ [ recalled the ring recovered from the body stating, “The last time I
saw it a district attorney up at Sumner had it. Now they took the ring off of that boy’s
finger and Sheriff Strider an gave it to me. Well I gave it to the district attorney”...
“when that trial started they had all of us in the room, all the witnesses. The district
attorney brought that ring and then showed it to Emmett’s mother. Asked her if she
ever remembers seeing that ring. She said no sir, I, I hadn’t, I hadn’t ever seen it.
About thirty minutes later, they put her on the witness stand and she swore she saw
that ring on little Emmett’s finger when he boarded the bus in Chicago.” 146
| j | who did not testify at trial in 1955, worked for the
located in Greenwood, Mississippi in 1955.
CD
assisted
in the recovery of Till’s body along the Tallahatchie
River and the processing of the body at the [
| { recalled
]
and many other people being at the site where the
J45 Appendix A - Transcript - State of Mississippi vs* Milam and Roy Bryant, Second District of Tallahatchie
rrmntv Turlicml Harriet. September 1955 - Testimony of John Ed Cnthnn 1 Tj to 175
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body was brought to the shore. The body was lying on the river bank with a gin fan
pulley tied around its neck with barbed wire. | jrecalled untangling the wire
from the body; injuries to the head of the body.
Jand carrying the body to the funeral home in Greenwood, Mississippi.
could not recall the body having a ring on any of its
fingers. 147
• Mose Wright (deceased): Testified that following Till’s kidnaping on August 28,
1955, the next time Wright observed Till was the following Wednesday when "...he
was taken out of the river. He was in a boat then "...and... "He was dead." A Deputy
Sheriff from Greenwood, Mississippi notified Wright to come to the river. Present at
the river was Sheriff Strider, Deputy Garland Melton and a lot of other white people.
Wright observed the undertaker, Chester Miller, take a ring off of Till's finger and
place it on the seat of the funeral coach. Miller then gave the ring to Wright and
Wright later gave the ring to a Leflore County Sheriffs Deputy. When asked about
the ring taken from Till’s finger, Wright stated he had never seen the ring before, but
had been told by Simeon and Robert [Wright’s sons] the ring was Till's; ,48 ’ 149
recalled, “What happened was, the sheriff brought the
ring out to our house and showed it to dad, which I was standin’ there with him, said
this is the ring that we found on the body. And that’s when I uh, blurted out, said
iatT
lit*
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Appendix A - Transcript - State of Mississippi vs, J. W* Milam and Roy Bryant, Second District of Tallahatchie
C ounty. Seven teenth Judicial District, September 1955 - Testimony of Mose Wright, 4 to 64
l49 | J- “1 Saw Them Take Em mett Tilt - The tape-re corded story by Emmett Till' Uncle Moses Wright,”
Front Page Detective, October 25, 1955 J **
—n
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that’s Emmett’s, that’s Bobo’s ring.’
Till’s visit to Mississippi. l5 °
Jhad seen Till wearing the ring during
was at home when Mose Wright told him that they had
carried Mose
found a body and Mose Wright wanted to go and identify it.
Wright to where the body was, watched as Mose Wright pulled a ring from Till’s
finger and then heard Mose Wright state the body was Till. Additionally, Mose
Wright toltj
"that Till’s
151
* Note: During the course of the investigation the ring was not
discovered and there is no reason to expect that it will be found,
d. August 31. 1955. 3:00 p.m.. Greenwood. Mississippi:
• C.A. Strickland (believed deceased): Strickland was an Identification Officer,
Collision Department, Greenwood Police Department. At approximately 3:00 p.m.
on August 31, 1955 Strickland was called upon to take photographs of a dead body at
the Century Burial Funeral Home in Greenwood, Mississippi. At trial, Strickland
identified a photograph he had taken of the body. The photographs were not located
during the course of the investigation. 152
• C.F. (Chick) Nelson (deceased): Testified that Nelson was the manager and
operator of a funeral home in Tutwiler, Mississippi. Nelson was requested to pick up
the body of Emmett Tilt during the last part of August and Nelson sent someone to
pick up the body at Century Funeral Home. The body was then brought to Nelson's
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m Appendix A - Transcript - State of Mississippi vs. J.W, Milam and Roy Bryant, Second District of Tallahatchie
County, Seventeenth Judicial District, September 1955 - Testimony of C.A. Strickland, 80 to 85
79
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funeral home where the body was prepared for shipping to Chicago and' subsequently
shipped to A. A. Rainer and Sons Funeral Home in Chicago. 133
After Roy Bryant’s arrest.
was taken
in by family members. “I was at Buddy Milam’s store...” “...and Raymond [Roy
Bryant’s twin brother] came in. I don’t know if Raymond was by himself or not. I
think that was the day the body was found, and I think that he told me that and, and
uh, I don’t know what I said to him, that Roy, Roy said he didn’t do anything to him
or something and anyway, Raymond said Roy didn’t. It was Melvin. Well eh went, I
said well why would, why would they arrest Roy then? And he said I was not to tell
anybody it was Melvin and 1 said well I will. . 134
Movement and Identification of the Body:
who did not testify at trial, worked at the
]in Greenwood, Mississippi, transported Till’s body from the
recovery site on the Tallahatchie River to the funeral home. Once there,
recalled placing the body in a coffin and then taking the body to Money, Mississippi
for burial. While there, a Deputy Sheriff “and that boy’s uncle” advised them the
body needed to be taken to Tutwiler, Mississippi, as the body was going to go to
Chicago for burial. The following morning |~ [ and Chester Miller went to the
funeral home in Tutwiler and were told they had soaked the body in fluid to preserve
it. The body was placed in rubber pouches, placed in a casket and they took the body
to Clarksdale to the train. I j did not recall a doctor looking at the body. So
153 Appendix A - Transcript. - State of Mississippi vs. J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant, Second District of Tallahatchie
County. Seventeenth Judicial District. September 1955 - Testimony of C.F. (Chickl Nelson. 177 to 1 80
II I Mi sc O/S
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many people came to look at the body while it was at the funeral home the police had
to keep people back. i55
In 1955,
who did not testify at trial, was
employed by the Tutwiler Funeral Home, located in Tutwiler, Mississippi,
transported Till’s body from the Century Burial and Funeral Home, located in
Greenwood, Mississippi, to the Tutwiler Funeral Home and prepared the body for
shipment to Chicago. stated the body was “in bad shape” when he got him.
embalmed the body, prepared it for shipping and shipped it to Chicago,
Illinois, for burial. 156
worked for
in Chicago,
Illinois. j~ j received Till’s body upon arrival in Chicago and opened the shipping
container, j j jescribed the body as “I couldn’t recognize it was a body because
the body had been in the water and when a body’s in the water, it becomes swelled,
disfigured, you can hardly tell who the person is.” *
Till’s mother directed that
no work be done on the body before it was shown to the public. | j didn’t agree
with her decision, but did as she asked. 157
• Mamie Bradley (deceased): Bradley viewed her son’s body at the A. A. Rainer
Funeral Home. When Bradley observed the body, it was still in the casket. She saw
it again later when it had been removed from the casket and placed on a slab. The
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body had not been tampered with except that it had been clothed. Bradley was able to
positively identify the body, in the casket and on the slab, as that of Emmett Louis
Till by looking very carefully at the ears, forehead, hairline, hair, nose, lips and chin.
Bradley knew it was her boy "beyond a shadow of a doubt."
Bradley further testified Till frequently wore a ring that had been sent to her in
her husband's effects following his death. Bradley identified a ring, which had been
taken off of the body recovered from the Tallahatchie River, as a ring worn by Till
and the ring she had received in her husband's effects following his death.
Additionally, at trial Bradley identified Till from a photograph which had been taken
by Mr. Strickland as a photograph of Till. 158, iS9
D. State of Mississippi vs. Rov Bryant and J. W, Milam: Milam and Bryant were
indicted by a Grand Jury in Tallahatchie County on September 5, 1955 on one count each of
kidnaping and murder. 160 The kidnaping charge was dropped by the prosecution and the trial for
murder took place in Sumner, Mississippi from September 19, 1955 through September 23, 1955, on
which date they were acquitted.
Press accounts reveal that after the trial had begun, additional witnesses were identified and a
break in the proceedings occurred on Tuesday September 20, 1955 in order for these leads to be
pursued.
161
advised that a bam on the Clint Shurden Plantation was searched on September
20, 1955 by Sunflower County District Attorney Stanny Sanders and Sunflower County Sheriff s
L5fl
Appendix A - Transcript - State of Mississippi vs, J,W, Milam and Roy Bryant Second District of Tallahatchie
County, Seventeenth Judicial District September 1955 - Testimony of Mamie Bradley. 1 80 to 21 Q
l * J The Lynching of Emmett Till a Documentary Narrative, Christopher Metress, 62 to 63
82
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Department Deputy Rice. Dr, T.R.M. Howard, a prominent black citizen who is credited with
finding some of the additional witnesses was also allegedly present when the bam was searched. 162
A partial transcript of the trial was made and a copy was in the possession of defense
attorney J. W. Kellum. Kellum apparently loaned the transcript to someone, could not recall who he
had loaned it to and thus it became lost. At the time of Kellum’s death in 1996 his son,[
searched Kellum’s files and was unable to locate the transcript. 163 In 1985^
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recalled
“...a transcript of that case was made for the purpose of having it in the event a kidnaping charge '
was placed against those boys in Leflore County.” 164 currently a
understood tha| |
{had a transcript of the trial madej
□
borrowed a copy of the transcript fron£
subsequently returned it tcj
Juringj
attendance at law school and
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a native of Tallahatchie County, and £
]
obtained a copy of the trial transcript from defense attorney J.J.
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Breland.
used the transcript as a reference material in writing
lever returned the transcript and kept it for
many years. Some years ago.
home suffered a flood and the transcript, along with other
Till research material, was destroyed. 166
recalled that the family had ordered a copy of the court records and had to pay
$75 to have them made. 167
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contents are not to be distributed outside your agency.
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Investigation with a copy of the trial transcript.
a native of Tallahatchie County, provided the Federal Bureau of
Lee McGarrh, Sr., had testified at
the trial of Milam and Bryant as a character witness for the defense. Upon McGarrh, Sr.’s death,
168
reveals that the final page is a
obtained the copy of the transcript from
A review of the purported transcript provided by
certification of the document which is signed by Court Reporter James T. O’ Day in Tate County,
Mississippi on October 28, 1955. 169
News accounts of the trial depicted photographs of the ring which was entered into evidence,
one of which is shown below. A review of this photograph reveals the tag attached to the ring has
the words “Exhibit 1 to Testimony of Mr. Cothran 9/21/55” and appears to bear a signature of “J T
O’Day.”
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lb * Appendix A * Transcript * State of Mississippi vs. f Milam and Roy Bryant, Second District of Tallahatchie
County, Seventeenth judicial District, September 1955, 351 '
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Ring Taken From the Body and Identified as TtlFs
Photograph from “Death of Innocence, The story of the Hate Crime
that Changed America,” by Mamie Till-MobJey and attributed to
AP/Wide World Photos
Records from the Tate County Circuit Clerk’s Office reveal James T. O’Day was a Court
Reporter working for the Chancery Court of Tate County from July 1, 1955 until his removal from
office on August 15, 195 8. I70, 171 An interview witl
revealed that
James T. O’Day died in 1993 at a Veteran’s Hospital in Arizona. 172
E. November 8, 1955 - Leflore County Grand Jury ? On November 8, 1955; a Grand
Jury considered a charge of kidnaping against J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant. Witnesses for the
‘TZZ
I Records from the Tate Countv Circuit Clerk, October 31, 2005, [
1 Misc
1
\ Records from the Tate County Circuit Clerk, September 16, 2005J""
1
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contents are not to be distributed outside your agency.
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prosecution were Mose Wright, Willie Reed, John Ed Cothran and George Smith. The Grand Jury
returned a No Bill on the charges. 173
F. Admissions:
1. Look Magazine: The January 24, 1955 edition of Look magazine contained an
article by author William Bradford Huie, entitled “The Shocking Story of Approved Killing in
Mississippi.” 174 Bryant and Milam were paid $1,500 each for the interview, with their attorneys
receiving $1,000. The following excerpts outline key portions of the story as reported by Huie:
• On August 27, 1955, J.W. Milam drove to Minter City, to his brother-in-law’s
(Melvin Campbell’s) store, where he worked until 12:30 a.m. on Sunday morning,
August 28, 1955. Milam then left and went home to Glendora, Mississippi.
• After returning home to Glendora, Milam decided not to go to bed. Instead, he
filled his truck up with gasoline and went to Money, Mississippi.
• Milam arrived in Money, Mississippi about 2:00 a.m. and found Roy .and Carolyn
Bryant asleep. Milam knocked on the back door and Roy Bryant came outside.
• Both men were sober.
• Milam and Bryant (no other persons are mentioned) traveled to Mose Wright’s
home and took Till.
• If there was doubt about Till’s identity the group would have stopped in Money
and had Carolyn Bryant identify Till.
January 24, 1955,
l Leflore County Court Records, November 8, 1955, | ~J
J William Bradford Huie, ‘The Shocking Story of Approved Killing in Mississippi,” Look Magazine >
]
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• They attempted to find a bluff along the Mississippi River at which to whip Till
and scare him, but could not find it, after driving almost 75 miles. They then drove to
Glendora, Mississippi, arriving at about 5:00 a.m.
• They took Till into a shed located behind Milam’s home in Glendora and pistol
whipped him there.
• After deciding to kill Till, they traveled to a cotton gin at Boyle, Mississippi and
picked up a discarded gin fan there. Milam is quoted as saying, “When we got to that
gin, it was daylight, and I was worried for the first time. Somebody might see us and
accuse us of stealing the fan.”
• The two forced Till to load the fan into the truck and then drove back to Glendora,
then north to Swan Lake, crossing the Tallahatchie River bridge. They traveled south
about two miles on a gravel road that paralleled the Tallahatchie River. Once at a
spot Milam was familiar with, they forced Till to carry the gin fan to the river, made
him strip his clothing off, and Milam shot Till. This occurred or was just prior to
7:00 a.m.
in 1985
A comparison of the Look magazine statements and the evidence reveals a number of
inconsistencies or differences. They are:
a. Roy Bryant stated to Cooperating Witness ) | hereinafter referred to as j
that on the night they took Till there was a lot of drinking and the group had not gone to Boyle,
Mississippi that night to get the gin fan. Additionally, Roy Bryant took | [ o the bam in which
they beat and killed Till, and) [photographed the bam. The bam is the same as that identified
87
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contents are not to be distributed outside your agency.
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by
and is located on the former Clint Shurden Plantation where Leslie Milam operated a
farm in 1955, as discussed earlier. 175
b. On August 28, 1955 civil twilight began at 5:06 a.m. and sunrise was at 5:22 a.m.
Daylight arrived while, according to Huie’s account, the group was in Glendora, Mississippi, beating
Till in the shed behind Milam’s home. Milam is quoted as being worried about being seen after
arriving in Boyle as daylight had arrived.
r
c. The distance from Money, Mississippi to Rosedale, Mississippi is 56 miles. The distance
from Rosedale, Mississippi to Glendora, Mississippi is 50 miles. The distance from Glendora,
Mississippi to Boyle, Mississippi is approximately 33 miles. The group would have traveled over
164 miles (139 miles plus the additional 25 miles stated in the article spent looking for the bluff on
< ,
the Mississippi River) from the time they kidnaped Till at approximately 2:30 a.m., until the time
they arrived at Boyle, Mississippi. With an average speed of 45 miles per hour, and allowing for a
ten minute stop in Money, Mississippi (as related by
the total time in
travel would have been approximately 3 hours 38 minutes. This calculation has the group arriving in
Boyle, Mississippi after 6:08 a.m. and does not allow any time for the beating of Till in Glendora,
Mississippi, '
Dawn arrived on August 28, 1955 at 5:06 a.m. It appears difficult for the travel distances and
times outlined in the article to be physically possible when arriving at Boyle, Mississippi at or near
day break. ■
d. The proximity of the buildings in Glendora, Mississippi at the time would have created a
situation wherein the noise created by someone being beaten in a shed behind Milam’s home would
TO
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in all likelihood have been heard by other residents of the town. No interviews, press accounts or
anecdotal evidence indicate this occurred.
e.
advised that Roy Bryant, J.W. Milam and a man named Kimbrell
brought Emmett Till tc
in Money, Mississippi during the early morning hours of August
28, 1955. m
f. Willie Reed’s testimony in 1955 stated that four white men and three black men were in
the truck with Till.
g. Amandy Bradley testified as to an individual, whose physical description was that of J.W.
Milam, being at Leslie Milam’s farm when Till was there.
h. Add Reed testified that Leslie Milam was present at Leslie Milam’s farm when Till was
there.
observed J.W. Milam to be near Milam’s pickup truck, which contained
something underneath a tarpaulin that was bleeding, in Glendora, Mississippi, early on the morning
of August 28, 1955. At or near the truck were Oso (Otha Johnson, Jr.), “Too Tight” Collins (Levi .
Collins), and
was approaching the truck. The Look magazine
confession does not mention a stop in Glendora during full daylight hours.
it
^stated that there was no barn located behind her and
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in
] It was just a field out there
Glendora, Mississippi, stating “There wadn’t any bam |
and then the river.” 177
2. J.W. Milam’s Admission: During the course of conducting research on Emmett
Till’s murder Confidential Sourcej [interviewed Milam on three occasions over the telephone. b7D
During these conversations Milam related the following details about Till’s kidnaping and murder:
15-
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On the Saturday evening and Sunday morning of Till’s kidnaping, Melvin Campbell and J.W.
Milam were together and Roy Bryant was at his home/store in Money, Mississippi. Sometime
during the evening Campbell, J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant met and were playing cards and drinking
moonshine. While together, the story of Till whistling at
Bryant and either ‘Too Tight” Collins or
came up Mid Milam,
using Hubert Clark’s car, traveled to
Money, Mississippi to pick up
and then to Mose Wright’s home.
Once the group had Till, they dropped
off in Money, Mississippi and drove
back to where they had been drinking. Once there, J.W. Milam, Roy Bryant, Melvin Campbell,
Hubert Clark, “Too Tight” Collins and
were present. The group beat Till there
and eventually loaded him into Milam’s truck to take him to a place on the Mississippi River to scare
him.
They couldn’t find the location on the river and rode around for a long time. Eventually, it
was beginning to get light and they had to do something, so they went to Leslie Milam’s farm,
outside of Drew, Mississippi. Leslie Milam was not happy about the group showing up with Till
because he had work to do that day.
The group now included Roy Bryant, Leslie Milam, J.W. Milam, Hubert Clark, Melvin
They took Till into a bam and continued to
Campbell, “Too Tight” Collins and
beat him. At some point Till’s wallet fell out of his pants and the group discovered a photograph of
a white woman in it. During the beating Till was never respectful to the men and did not say “yes
sir” or “no sir.” Things got out of hand and Till stated something to the effect of “he was as good as
they are.”
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Till was killed in the bam on Leslie Milam’s farm. After he died Till's clothing was stripped
off and Collins and | [ were directed to clean the blood up that was on the floor. After cleaning
the blood up a second time they spread cotton seed on the floor to cover up the blood stain.
J.W. Milam, Roy Bryant and Melvin Campbell took Till’s body in Milam’s truck, left Leslie
Milam’s farm and picked up a gin fan somewhere. They took Till’s body to a bridge in a secluded
area, affixed the gin fan to Till and threw him off the bridge, into the Tallahatchie River. At about
the same time Clark, utilizing Leslie Milam’s car, took Collins and | [ to bury Till’s clothing,
however. Till’s shoes were overlooked and remained in Leslie Milam’s car. After biirying the
clothing frnd Collins walked home.
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The night after the kidnaping and murder Collins was drinking and talking too much at a cafe.
A friend of Collins named Buck, got Collins out of the cafd and took him to Treola Collins’ house.
After Roy Bryant was arrested the Bryant/Milam family met at their mother’s home to
discuss what to do. The brothers were concerned about Roy Bryant “running his mouth” and didn’t
think he could stick to the story. It was decided that J.W. Milam should get himself arrested so he
could be with Roy Bryant in jail and help control what Roy Bryant did. 178
3. Roy Bryant’s Admission: In 1985 an individual, who is now a cooperating
witness, but who was unaffiliated with law enforcement at the time, hereinafter referred to as
met with Roy Bryant and approached him abouj
]
[
and Bryant rode together to the Wright home, Bryant’s Meat Market and Grocery
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was equipped with an
and to the bam where Till had been beaten and killed. During the trip
audio cassette recorder and successfully recorded portions of their conversation. The following
statements were made by Bryant and captured on tape:
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1*1
• When asked about taking Till to a bluff on the Mississippi River near Rosedale
they were going to “put his ass in the river”, the Mississippi River. 1 79
• When asked if they were drinking “Yeah, hell yeah we was drinkin” “Now we
wasn’ t drunk” “ . . .wasn’t nobody drunk.” 1 80
• About killing Till “Well, we done whopped the son of a bitch, and I had backed out
on killin’ the mother fucker. . .and we gonna take him to the hospital. But we
done whopped that son of a bitch. I mean, it was, the, carryin’ him to the hospital
wouldn’t have done him no good (laughs).” “Put his ass in the Tallahatchie River.
• When asked why they stopped in the woodshed over there (Leslie Milam’s) “I
donno. Tryin’ to make our minds up.” 182
• About going to Boyle to get the gin fan “We didn’t go to Boyle.” 183
• About Glendora “Didn’t go back to Glendora. Went through Glendora.” 184
• About other people knowing what had happened that night with Till'. “I’m the only
one who’s livin’ that knows it (laughs)” “That’s all that will ever be known” “That’s
the only two that was ever tried.” 183
4. Leslie F. Milam’s Death Bed Confession: Sometime just prior to his death in
August of 1974 Leslie Milam requested that
appear at his residence.
[ was aware that Milam was dying of cancer and traveled to his home. Upon his arrival b7c
Milam tolcj |he (Leslie Milam) had something he wanted to get off his chest, that he had
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been personally involved in the murder of Emmett Till in 1955. Milam toldj |that Milam
knew it was wrong and it had bothered him for all the years since the incident took place. Milam did
not provide any details as to his role in Till’s murder, where the events transpired, or the identities of
any other persons involved in the matter. 186
5. Leslie F. Milam’s Statements to Confidential Sourcej j During 1965 and
1966 Confidential Source ) | hereinafter referred to | was the owner of a business located in
Drew, Mississippi. While employed there □ met two brothers with the last name Milam at a
described one of the brothers as living in Ruleville, Mississippi arid who operated
a “mom and pop” store. The other brother was described as living in Cleveland, Mississippi and
whose spouse was named
also understood that
owned
Mississippi.
Durin g conversation with the Milam brother who lived in Cleveland, Mississippi the
brother revealed the following information about the killing of Emmett Till: 187
• Till’s body could not be located by authorities in a river because it had not been
thrown in a river.
• Till had gone to a “mom and pop” store owned by the Milam brother who lived in
Ruleville, Mississippi and had asked
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for a date. This infuriated the
Milam brothers and they decided to kill Till.
• The Milam brothers took Till out to the woods and “beat the hell out of him with
chains.” Believing Till was dead, they placed his body in the back of a pick-up truck
and drove around trying to figure out what to do with the body.
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• Two blacks, who worked for the Milams, were part of the group that beat and
killed Till. One of the blacks discovered Till wasn’t dead so the two blacks killed
him and helped in the disposal of his body.
• Till’s body was buried in a bam on property owned by
just west of the country club,
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owned a farm that was located on
outside of Drew, Mississippi.
An analysis of the information provided by | I ndicates the following:
a. The information provided, appears to have been provided by Leslie F. Milain due to the
fact that Leslie F. Milam resided in Cleveland, Mississippi at the time of the alleged conversation
and that
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b. The second Milam brothe j [ net appears to be either Stanley Lamar “Bud” Milam or
Roy Bryant. According to information provided by family members both Stanley Lamar “Bud”
Milam and Roy Bryant owned and operated small country stores in Ruleville, Mississippi at some
point in time.
6. Carolyn Bryant-Donham’s Admissions: Bryant-Donham testified on behalf of
the defense at trial in 1955. Additionally, during the course of this investigation !
[ [During her testimonyf
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Jn the events under
investigation here. These are:
• At trial,
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Bryant-Donham related
the story of Till’s entering the Bryant Grocery and Meat Market on August 24,
1955 wherein Till grabbed Bryant-Donham’s hand, waist and made advances
toward her.
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contents are not to be distributed outside your agency.
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whom
188, 189, 190
stated she was afraid to tell
about the incident at
the store with Till because
him up” and
because
|..”go find [Till] and beat
Jwhat had happened] |not to tell J.W.,
jjbe
cause
of what they would
„ 191, 192
do.
On Saturday, August 27, 1955, when confronted by Roy Bryant about what
had happened at the store.
gave him a detailed account of the
incident where Till grabbed her hand, waist and made advances toward her. 193
• On Saturday, August 27, 1955,“. . .there was a lady and her little boy or her
grandson or somebody was in the store and, I don’t know, Roy said something
to ‘em, and I remember telling him to leave him alone, that, you know, that
wasn’t him.” [Emmett Till] 194
• On Sunday, August 28, 1955 Roy Bryant, J.W. Milam and a man named
Kimbrell brought Emmett Till to
□
Jthey probably asked j | who, if that was him and
no mater what
Because
said no that’s not
liS Appendix A - Transcript - State of Mississippi vs. J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant, Second District of Tallahatchie
County. Seventh Judicial District. September 1955 - Testimony of MrsJRov Brvant.^5.8. to 277
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him because
195, 196, 197, 198
7. Lama reus Pilate: Memphis television station Fox 13 conducted an interview
with Lamarcus Pilate. In the interview, Pilate alleged that J.W. Milam confessed about Milam’s
involvement in Till’s murder to him when Pilate was fourteen years old. Pilate described Milam as
living in Ruleville, Mississippi at the time of the confession and as being employed as a police
officer at some point in time after Till’s murder. Pilate also alleged Milam told him an
were involved in Till’s killing. 199
and
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• Pilate’s statement regarding Milam being a law enforcement officer appears to be
in reference to Stanley Lamar “Bud” Milam, a Milam brother, who was a law
enforcement officer in Sunflower County sometime after the Till incident, 200
• No other information learned during the instant investigation indicates ar
ZZH I
was involved in this matter.
G. Laboratory. Medical and Other Findings:
1. Ithaca, Model MI911-A1, .45 caliber pistol, serial number 2102279:1
which her brother,
provided the investigating Agents with an Ithaca, Model Ml 91 1-A1, .45 caliber pistol
believes was owned by J.W. Milam and used to kill Emmett Till. The
pistol had been owned by the
father and was given to
1
191
m
199
| Interview of Lamarcus Pilate by Fox 13 NewsJ 1
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by her father. 201,202,203 Manufacturer’s data reflects that this weapon was manufactured in 1945 and
was inspected by Ithaca inspector 04
Latent print analysis was conducted on this weapon; however, no latent prints of value were
detected." This weapon was test fired in the laboratory and was found to function normally.
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2 .
Identification and Search of
Barn: A review of
the trial transcript, published accounts, photographs and information from individuals, identifier ^ |
Drew, Mississippi as the location of the former Clint Shurden Plantation. The
property is currently owned by
Situated on the property are£
and
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jjthat appear to have been standing in 1955.
traveled to Mississippi during April 2005 and visited the property in the
company of investigators. During the tour of the property j~ [explained the layout of the property b7c
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as it existed in 1955, the location of the various buildings and homes j j also positively identified
the bam, shown above, as the bam in which Emmett Till had been taken and from which j^ j heard
screams on August 28, 1955. 207
Additionally | I w ^° BO'anf 1985, was taken to the property by Bryant
and told that Till had been tortured/murdered inside the bam. The photograph taken by
the presence of Roy Bryant is depicted below:
he
On May 18, 2005, a search was conducted of the bam identified by The search
included the removal and sifting of dirt from the bam floor in one of the rooms known to exist in |^ c
1955 and the use of luminal on framing believed to exist in 1955. Seized during the search were five
items believed to be possible bone fragments. 208 Examination of these items by
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revealed three of these fragments to be animal bones and the remaining
two items as rocks. 209
3. Exhumation & Autopsy of Remains: Pursuant to an Illinois State Court Order,
on June 1 , 2005 the remains interred at the Burr Oak Cemetery, Alsip, Illinois, in a grave marked to
be that of Emmett Louis Till, were exhumed. 240,211 Following the exhumation of the gravesite, the
vault containing the casket and remains were transported to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s
Office. The vault was opened, the casket removed from the vault, and the remains removed from the
casket. Following removal of the remains from the casket, an autopsy was performed under the
direction o; Chief Medical Examiner, Cook County, Illinois. 2t2 ‘ 213(214
a. CT Examination: Upon removal from the casket, and prior to any physical
examination, the remains were transported to the John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County and
subjected to CT testing. The examination revealed there were extensive and dramatic fractures of
the skull, metallic fragments were identified in the cranium, and a vertical symphyseal fracture of the
thyroid cartilage was observed. The distal left femur was fractured. A possible subtle fracture of the
right capitate bone was observed in the right wrist, as well as a fracture to the left lunate bone of the
left wrist. 215 - 2 ' 6
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210
?n
212
213
214
nit XI]? i3
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b. Forensic Dental Examination: Dental examination of the remains was
conducted to establish the approximate age of the subject and to conduct a photographic comparison
of dental details. The dental development and the tooth eruption of the remains revealed that the
estimated mean dental age of the remains was 14.6 years, with a standard deviation of one year. 217
Family photographs of Emmett Till, taken during his lifetime, were obtained and provided to
the Cook County Medical Examiner for use in a forensic dental examination. 118 Examination of the
ante mortem photographs revealed a distinctive gap or space between the maxillary left lateral
incisor and the maxillary left canine. Measurements taken on the ante mortem photograph revealed
an angle of 74 degrees for the proximal angle of this gap. Postmortem examination of this gap
revealed an angle of 77 degrees for the proximal angle of this gap.
A photographic comparison wherein the superimposition of the left maxillary lateral incisor
and maxillary left canine teeth were compared to an overlay of the ante mortem and post mortem
dental images. This comparison revealed a concordance of both the anatomic contours of the incisal
one-third of these teeth and their proximal angles.
The dental examination concluded that based on a reasonable degree of dental certainty, the
dental age, and proximal angle comparisons, are consistent with that of Emmett Louis Till.
217
21*
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c. Evidence of Injury : The autopsy revealed the following evidence of injury to the
219
remains:
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was provided by
222, 223
d. Mitochondrial DNA Examination:
(1 .) Till Family Genealogy: The data presented on the chart below
other data sources, and verified through vital records checks. 220,221.
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obtained froir
(2.) Laboratory Results: A blood sample and two buccal swabs were
"Tor mtDNA comparison purposes. 224 A piece of muscle tissue was
obtained from the remains exhumed on June 1 , 2005. The mtDNA sequences obtained from the
and the muscle tissue from the remains are the same.
specimens contributed by
Therefore, Emmett Till cannot be excluded as the source of the muscle tissue. A search of the
mtDNA population database available at the time of testing revealed two observations of this
sequence in the African American population, with 1,148 individuals represented. The upper bound
frequency for this occurrence is .42%.
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mtPNA Sequencing Results
Specimen
K4
Muscle Tissue from Remains
Blood stjiin EEamTTj l
Range
np 15998-16389
np 15998-16389
16124 C
16124 C
HVI
16223 T
16223 T
16319 A
163 19 A
Range
np 49-408
np 49-408
HVII
73 G
73 Gl
150 T
150 T
152 C
152C
263 G
263 G,
309.1 C
309.1 C*
315.1 C
315.1 G
*C8TC6-Major
C9TC6
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e. Anthropological Examination : During the autopsy process, anthropological
examinations were conducted and the following conclusions reached: 226
(1 .) Observations of age at death factors are consistent with the known
age at death of Emmett Till of 14 years. In particular, an age at death of approximately 14 years is
suggested by the extent of dental formation, bone development, and epiphyseal union.
(2.) The cranium exhibited extensive fractures with areas of missing
bone, with the fractures concentrated in areas of the cranial vault and base. No evidence of healing
was associated with the fractures and they did not display evidence of having been produced during
exhumation and examination. The characteristics of the fractures are consistent with having been
produced at or about the time of death.
107
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(3.) Areas of radiodensity were noted during radiographic
examination and samples were collected.
(4.) Deposits of dark, metallic-appearing material were noted during
examination of the cranial skeletal remains. Samples of these deposits were collected for further
examination.
f. Laboratory Results:
(1.) Lead Fragments: Four of the lead fragments recovered during
autopsy were found to be consistent in their remaining physical characteristics with deformed shot
pellets. The weights of these pellets are consistent with either number 7 I/2 or numbers lead shot
pellets. 227 '
(2.) Metallic Deposits: The deposits of dark, metallic-appearing
material collected during the anthropological examination were found to contairilead residue.
g. Ammunition Data : Remington Arms Company manufactured two .45
caliber pistol cartridges prior to 1955 which contained shot, the M12 and the M 15 cartridges. Each
of these cartridges contained number 7 1/2 chilled lead shot and were manufactured for the Army Air
Force to be utilized by aircraft combat crews for survival purposes . 229
advised that his[ jwas very accurate with his .45 caliber pistol and that “I
can tell ya how good he was with that old pistol. I seen him shoot bumble bees out of the air with
it.”
230
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M12 (left) and two versions of M15 Ammunition
h. Processing of Evidence: Following the June 2, 2005 autopsy of the remains
removed from the gravesite alleged to contain the remains of Emmett Till evidence collected was
processed and forwarded to the laboratory. 231,232
i. Anatomic Diagnosis: 233
(1.) Gunshot wound of the head.
(2.) Multiple comminuted skull fractures.
(3.) Multiple lead fragments recovered from head and skull.
(4.) Fractures of the right and left wrist bones.
(5.) Fracture of the distal left femur.
(6.) Embalmed body with numerous venting incisions in the skin and floor of
t
mouth.
(7.) Missing left upper central incisor with open socket. Misc 0 / s
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j, Medical Examiner's Opinion: Emmett Louis Till died of a gunshot wound
of the head. Manner of death; homicide. 234
G, Other Allegations & Issues:
l|
individual who represented himself to be j
witnessed the torture of Till, 235 initially identified!
conducting research on a lynching in Mississippi, met an
Veiatedto| |that | | had
| during a telephone
>[
conversation on June 2, 2004. 236
During a later interview,
white male
identified the individual he met as
pt the time|
□
| interviewed him in 2001 .]
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stated he had not revealed
meet the investigating Agent and was attempting to protect
information from inadvertent disclosure to other )
"[related
true name initially, because at the time he had yet to
[identity and |
.to
that he witnessed the torture of Emmett Till in 1955.
^described receiving a telephone call to meet someone and ending up at a bam. Present at the
bam were ten to twelve other people, including two black men, a white woman and a white boy of
about twelve years old. The torture took place inside the bam in a small room that contained a set of
bleachers.
According to
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his skin was pierced at multiple places with an awl, and
Till was beaten with fists, an anvil was used to strike his head,
used
a brace and bit (a hand operated drill) to drill a hole in Till’s head. Drilling wounds were located on
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the head about one inch above Till’s right ear, as well as on other parts of Till’s body. Additionally,
most of Till’s teeth were knocked out, the right side of his face was caved in and there were scraping
wounds along Till’s ribs.
related that Till’s killing had been approved by the local FCu Klux
(Clan leadership and part of the reason Till had been killed were the facts that he was from Chicago
and not considered to be a child.
heard that, in addition tc
J. W. Milam; Roy Bryant;^
Mississippi^
jelieves that, based upon his interview of ] | and other information he has
the following were present at the bam during Till’s torture:
I
an unknown man
^ Levy “Too Tight” Collins’; an unknown white woman; and a white
teenage boy.
237
| each of the approximate
I [ was shown a total of sixty-nine photographs which depicted white males from
Mississippi and one white male from Texas, all with the last name£
believed
1238 . 239
ag<
the photographs as
to be. | [was unable to identify any of the men depicted in
A comparison of the story related * 4 | fay[
number of inconsistencies or differences. They are:
to the evidence reveals a
a. Only one tooth was missing from Till’s remains at the time of autopsy.
b. No “scraping wounds” or “awl” wounds as described b j ' \ were present
on Till’s body at the time of autopsy.
1
. Mi sc o/s
LAW ENFORCEMENT SENSITIVE
This document contains neither recommendations nor conclusions of the FBI, ft is the property of the FBI and is loaned to your agency, it and its
contents are not to be distributed outside your agency.
LAW ENFORCEMENT SENSITIVE
i
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c. The testimony of Amandy Bradley, Willie Reed and Add Reed did not
indicate a large number of automobiles were present at the Clint Shurden Plantation on the morning
Till was present there.
d. The testimony of Amandy Bradley indicates she only saw four white men
present at the Clint Shurden Plantation on the morning Till was present there.
e. No evidence of wounds made by a drill were found on Till’s body. It should
be noted, however, that Till’s ] was missin d ~
-I bS
Jat the time of b7c
autopsy.
Mississippi Sovereignty Commission records reveal two instances wherein a ; Billy Wilson,
the owner oj
i store in
the Till murder. 24{
interviewed.
Mississippi is alleged to have been involved in
the wife of Billy Wilson, the owner o ]
was
stated her husband died in 1991. The couple married in 1951 and lived
their entire lives together in the
and
Leflore, Tallahatchie or Sunflower County areas.
]Mississippi areas and never lived in the
was aware that certain allegations
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existed that her husband made statements about being involved in Emmett Till’s murder, however,
she believes it was another Billy Wilson who lived in the Mississippi Delta who made those
statements.
241
2 .
1
is a
who grew up in
Mississippi. | |is the subject of
The book is biographical in nature and recounts certain events in
including
is the daughter of
father operated a£
:»r
411 “
«
T Sovereignty Commission Records. T
] Misc o/s
112
LAW ENFORCEMENT SENSITIVE
This document contains neither recommendations nor conclusions of the F8f, It is the property of the FBI and is loaned to your agency; it and its
contents are not to be distributed outside your agency.
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LAW ENFORCEMENT SENSITIVE
in the 1950s ir
Mississippi. | jmother picked cotton.
alleged that
]
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[ had some involvement in Till’s murder.j
recalled an incident where she traveled with ] 1 J.W. Milam, two other men and j j to
several locations in Leflore County. She believes the locations the group visited were locations
involved in Till’s kidnaping and murder.
stated that as a child she accompanied her father on many occasions when he would
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stop at Bryant’s Grocery & Meat Market in Money, Mississippi. He would stop at the store
whenever he passed through on his way to check his trotlines and go fishing. During these stops,
j witnessed her father kissing and huggin g
on numerous occasions.
[
Sometimes on these visits
[ believes her father, and
P
and her brothers would have to wait on their father for hours.
both had affairs withj ~|
3. Ku Klux Klan and Other Allegations: An extensive search and review of
records pertaining to the activities of the Ku Klux Klan during the 1 950s, and in the area of interest
here, was conducted. This research, including the review of case files and informant files, did not
reveal any information indicating that the Ku Klux Klan had any involvement in the kidnaping and
murder of Emmett Till. Additionally, these records did not reveal any information that any of the
persons of interest to this investigation were involved in Ku Klux Klan activities.
A review of Federal Bureau of Investigation files related to Till’s kidnaping and murder
revealed several references to the alleged kidnaping of Levi Collins and
prior to
trial in 1955. At the time Robert Smith, III, a Special Prosecutor assigned to assist at the trial of
Milam and Bryant, and a former Special Agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, conducted
TTT
Mi sc O/S
LAW ENFORCEMENT SENSITIVE
This document contains neither recommendations nor conclusions or the FBJ, It is the property of the FBI and is loaned to your agency; it and its
contents are not to be distributed outside your agency, ?
LA W ENFORCEMENT SENSITIVE
investigation into these allegations on behalf of the prosecution. Smith searched fo:
Collins and determined they had not been at the Charleston, Mississippi jail, as been alleged. Smith
learned these details from the Tallahatchie County Sheriff, a Deputy Sheriff, a search of the jail, and
interviews of jail inmates by the Mississippi Highway Safety Patrol. 243
While there are other rumors regarding the murder of Emmett Till which have been
expressed from time to time, there is insufficient corroboration, lead information or other evidence to
warrant further investigation into any of these rumors.
Misc O/S
TTT-
LAW ENFORCEMENT SENSITIVE
This document contains neither recommendations nor conclusions of the FBI It is the property of the FBI and is loaned to your agency; it and its
contents are not to be distributed outside your agency.
LAW ENFORCEMENT SENSITIVE
SUBJECTS
1. Name:
Date of Birth:
Place of Birth:
Social Security Account Number:
Address:
Criminal Record:
2. Name:
Date of Birth:
Place of Birth: *
Social Security Account Number:
Address:
Criminal Record:
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115
LAW ENFORCEMENT SENSITIVE
This document contains neither recommendations nor conclusions of the FBI, It is the property of the FBf and is loaned to your agency; it and its
contents are not to be distributed outside your agency.
LAW ENFORCEMENT SENSITIVE
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Prosecutive Report oflnvestigation Concerning
[ "I b6
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Roy Bryant - Deceased;
John William Milam, also known as J.W. Milam - Deceased;
Leslie F. Milam - Deceased;
Melvin L. Campbell - Deceased;
£lmer Kimbrell - Deceased;
Hubert Clark - Deceased;
Levi Collins, also known as. Too Tight Collins - Deceased;
Johnny B. Washington - Deceased;
. Otha Johnson Jr., also known as Oso - Deceased:
Emmett Louis Till - Deceased - Victim;
Civil Rights - Conspiracy
Domestic Police Cooperation
APPENDIX A - TRANSCRIPT
LAW ENFORCEMENT SENSITIVE
[‘his dckcurnem ainutnt neither rejornmendattuns nor ctiT*;1it4tfins of the FBI It is the property d the FttJ and tuaned to your
agency: « and it* unnertb ant niaio be distributed outside your agency
I
b-Jfll (Rev 10-0-95)
I
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- * •
FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION
One of !<ai>sc upturn 10/06/20 04
The following is a retyped transcript of the ROY 3RYANT
and J. W. MILAM trial for the murder of EMMETT TILL which took .
place in Sumner, Mississippi during September, 1955. This
transcript has been created in such a manner as to reflect the
correct page numbers and attributions as they are in the original
transcript .
Instances where the original text is not legible, an
underline (_) symbol will be utilized in place of the unkhewn text
and/or letters .
!nv«ii«an»i on September 1955 ji Sumner, Mississippi
4 4 A - JN - 30112 , 62 D- JN - 3 004 5 -FD 3 G 2
D»c diciatcd
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IIma diicumcni contains nfiihcr rcccrnnicndjUioit* r,c<f condutiiuni or Ifit fftl U is the propmy oi rhe PBl and is Ickmi«n1 lo \ ouj agrncy,
tl -ITVli it-' r. „ - k, - f K ..
KOaiRev. 10-6-95)
44A-JN- 30112 , 62D-JN- 30045- FD3 02
linuntion of HD-302 of TRAM SCRIPT - EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sept 1955 ,»
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT
SECOND DISTRICT OF TALLAHATCHIE COUNTY
SEVENTEENTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT
STATE OF MISSISSIPPI
INDICTMENT - MURDER
******* ************ ******
Proceedings of Trial
At
September Term, 195S
In
Sumner, Mississippi
**************************
STATE OF MISSISSIPPI
VS.
)
J. W. MILAM and
ROY BRYANT
V
02s (Rev 10-6-95)
4 4 A - JN- 30112) 62D- JN- 3Q045-FD3Q2
inuaiion of FO-M2 <*<“ TRANSCRI PT -EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sept. 1955 . On J'»ge 3
. STATE OF MISSISSIPPI ) *
■) In the Circuit Court
TALLAHATCHIE COUNTY ) ■
SEPTEMBER TERM. 1955
STATE OP MISSISSIPPI
VS .
J. W. MILAM and ROY .BRYANT *
I NDICTMENT -MURDER
Presiding:
Hon. Curtis M. Swango, Jr., Circuit Judge,
Seventeenth Judicial District of the State.
Appearances:
For the State: ■
Hon. Gerald Chatham, District Attorney; '
Hon. Robert B. Smith, III, Special Assistant ■
to the District Attorney;
Hon. Hamilton Caldwell, County Attorney.
For the Defendants: . 1
Hon. J. J. Breland, of Sumner, Mississippi;
Hon. C. Sidney Carlton, of Sumner, Mississippi; ;
Hon. J. W. Kellum, of Sumner, Mississippi;
Hon. John W. Whitten, Jr., of Sumner, Miss.;
Hon. Harvey Henderson, of Sumner, Mississippi.
J02* (R;v 10-6-95)
44A-JN- 30112, 62D-JN- 30045 -FD3 02
iiimj.it ion of FD-M2 of TRAMSCR I PT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sept; 3 955 . On . Page 4
INDEX
WITNESSES
Direct
For the State:
Mose Wright 4
Chester A. Miller 64
C- A. Strickland 80
George Smith 85
Robert Hodges 100
B. L. Mims 110
John Ed Cothran 133
C. F. (Chick) Nelson 127
Mamie Bradley 180
Willie Reed 210
Add Reed 245
Amandy Bradley 250
For the Defendants:
Mr?. Roy Bryant 258
Mrs. J. W. Milam 277
H. C. Strider 281
Dr. L. B. Otken 293
H. D. Malone 306
Lee Russell Allison ' 322 *
Lee McGarrh 327
L. W. Boyce 330
James Sanders 333
Harold Terry 337
Cross
Re-Direct
Re-Cross
29
74
76.94
98 •
87
91,116,128
121,131
137,159
179
187
174
226
241
249
-
280
267
292,302
303
298
301,
302
318
323
328
332
335
338
44A- JN-3 01 12 , 62D- JN-30045 -FD3 02
«l FD-J02 erf TRANSCRIPT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sent 1955 , On ;
ORGANIZATION OF COURT
STATE OF MISSISSIPPI ) f
} In the Circuit Court r
TALLAHATCHIE COUNTY )
SEPTEMBER TERM. 1955
BE IT REMEMBERED, that a regular term of the Honorabl
Circuit Court of the Second District of the County of
Tallahatchie, State of Mississippi, convened in the town of
Sumner, in said County and State, on this, the 19th day of
September, 1955, at the time and place designated by statute'
for the convening of said Court:
Present and presiding: Hon. Curtis M. Swango, Jr.,
Circuit Judge, Seventeenth Judicial District of the State;
present, Hon. Gerald Chatham, District Attorney; Hon. Robert^
B. Smith, III, Special Assistant to the District Attorney;
Hon .. Hamilton Caldwell, County Attorney; H. C. Strider,
Sheriff; Charlie Cox, Circuit Clerk; and James T. O'Day,
Court Reporter :
Court being duly and regularly convened by proclam-
ation of the Sheriff, the following proceedings were had.
'U-hoimKc* m-6-95}
44A-JN-30112, S2D-JN- 30045- FD3 02
.-ommhwmo O f FD-302 Of TRANSCRIPT-EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sept 1955 . Op >ge 6_
STATE OF MISSISSIPPI )
) In the Circuit Court
TALLAHATCHIE COUNTY } ;
SEPTEMBER TERM. 1.955 •
STATE OF MISSISSIPPI )
)
VS. ) NO.
)
J. W. MILAM and ROY BRYANT )
i
Indictment: Murder ■
PROCEEDINGS :
This day this cause came on to be heard, on this the
19th day of September, A. D. 19S5. Comes the District
Attorney, came also the defendants, each of them in his •'
own proper person and represented by counsel and announced
ready to proceed herein.
whereupon, came a jury selected from the regular panels
of the week and a special venire from this County, composed
of J. A. Shaw, Jr,, Ed Duvaney, Bishop Matthews, L. L. Price,,
Howard Armstrong, Ray Tribble, Davis Newton, James Toole,
George Holland, Travis Thomas, Gus Ramsey and Jim Pennington, '
all good and lawful men, being specially sworn to try the
issue.
Thereupon the cause proceeded to trial before the
Judge aforesaid, and the Jury aforesaid, when and where
the following proceedings were had, as follows: > 3
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jsntinualion ofFrYjOI of TRANSCRIPT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sept 1955 , On . Page 7
| THE COURT: Do you gentlemen desire to make any pre-
liminary statement?
| MR, CHATHAM: No Sir.
The District Attorney, for and on behalf of the State
I of Mississippi, then and there introduced che following
testimony and evidence, that- is-to-say : '
FOR THE PROSECUTION
MOSE WRIGHT, • ;
a witness introduced for and on behalf of the State, being
( ) first duly sworn, upon his oath testified as follows:
DIRECT EXAMINATION
BY DISTRICT ATTORNEY CHATHAM:
0 Will you please state your name to the Jury?
A Mose Wright.
Q Uncle Mose, where do you live?
A Money .
I
0 Is that Money, Mississippi?
A Yes , Sir . ;
Q And where is Money with reference to Philipp in '
Tallahatchie County?
A It is - - I think it is about north, maybe northeast .
Q Do you mean Philipp is north of Money?
‘ A Yes, Sir, that is what I chink.
Q How long have you lived in that community. Uncle
Mose -
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A Ever since '46. .
. J
Q And on August 28th, of this year, where were you
living near Money?
A where was I living?
Q On whose place were you living?
A Mr. G. C. Frederick.
Q And in which direction from Money is Mr. Frederick's
place?
A East .
: Q And about how far from Money is that?
A Three miles.
Q Uncle Mose, are you a married man?
A Yes, Sir.
Q How much family do you have?
A Oh, I have twelve.
Q You have twelve in your family?
A But they are not all with me, you know. :
Q In August of this year, how many of your family
were living with you there at your home, living with you and
your wife there?
A There was only me, and my wife and three children.
Q There was you, and your wife and three children
living there at that t ime .
A Yes, Sir.
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Q What kind of house do you live in, Uncle Mose?
A We live in a six- room house.
0 Will you tell the jury how those rooms are arranged?
A I think so.
Q Well, tell them, please,
A Well,, the house in the east is a living room, and
on the west there is a living room, in the front, you know,
and there is a screened- in front porch facing north; and
there is a kitchen between those rooms, and there is a door '
that enters into the east room, but it goes right on through ;
to the south room, you know.
Of course, there is a partition there, and we have '
got to go through this door there, and it is the same way
over on the other side. There is a west door that enters
into the west room. And then we just go on around there
and that is the way we enter the side of the other rooms
there. That is where the bedrooms, is.
house, I take it that there are two rooms on the front, is
that right?
Q From your explanation of the floor plan of your •.
A Two on the front, that's right.
Q And your house faces north, is that right?
A Yes, Sir.
Q How close is your house to the road?
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;ontinuaiio«ofFt)-j02 of TRAWSCRI PT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sept 1955 .On .'Pa?c 10
A It is fifty some feet, I think, about fifty feet.
Q Are there any trees in your yard between your front
porch and the road?
A Yes , s i r .
Q Now, specifically on the night of August 27th, Sat-
urday night, August 27th, who was there at your home at bed-:
time?
A Well, at bedtime, there was Curtis Jones, my grandson;
and Wheeler Parker, my grandson; and Emmett Louis Till, my
t nephew -- I am his uncle; and Lillybeth Wright, my wife; and;
Maurice and Robert and Simon, my sons.
0 Uncle Mose, tell the jury about what time that Sat-
urday night your family went to bed.
A. My wife was already in bed. Of course, myself and
the boys, we went to bed about one o'clock. We had went to
Greenwood that night, and we came in about one o'clock.
Q Had you, and your wife and all the members of your
family been to Greenwood that night?
A My wife didn’t go. It was just the boys that went.
Q And she remained at home , is that right?
A Yes, Sir. , ■
0 And you got back with them about one o'clock?
! . A Yes, Sir.
0 And you . immediately went to bed, is that right?;
Il
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44A-JN-30112, 620- JN - 30045 -FD302
^mnuaiion of FD- >02 of TRANSCRI PT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sent. 1956 . On , p». e 11
A Yes, Sir.
0 Now, I want you to tell the jury in which room of
your house did Emmett Till go to bed? ;
A Well, the east room, my wife and 1 sleep there. ?
Q Then we will call it the east front room, is that
right?
A That's right. And there is a door that leads out
to the side room there. That is where Emmett Till was.
0 And who went to bed with Emmett Till that night?
i A Simon, my baby.
Q And Simon and Emmett Till were the only two people
in that room- that night?.
A That 1 s right .
Q Now, Uncle Mose, after you and your family had gone
to bed that night, I want you to tell the jury if any person,
or if one or more persons called at your home that night,
and if they did, what time was it?
A About two o'clock. >
Q What was the first thing that attracted your atten-
tion to the fact that there was someone about your premises?
A Well, someone was at the front door, and he was saying,
"Preacher - - Preacher." And then 1 said, "Who is it?" And
f
f 1 then he said, "This is Hr. Bryant. I want to talk to you and
that boy.
JOZa (Rev [ 11-6-9 j)
44 A- JN- 30112 , 62D- JN~ 3004 5 - FD302
Kmwuonor Hl-302 of JRAI4.SCRI PT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL Rppf 19^4 .On ,P»gc 12
Q Do you know Mr. Bryant? ;
A I just know him since he came up here. I couldn't
see him that night so well, only with that flashlight there,
and I could see that it was this other man, Mr. Milam. But
I know Mr.' Milam.
Q You know Mr. Milam, do you?
A I sure do.
Q And then what did you do?
A Well, I got up and opened the door.
} Q And what did you see when you opened the door?
A Well, Mr. Milam was standing there at the door
with a pistol in his right hand and he had a flashlight in
his left hand. >
Q Now stop there a minute. Uncle Mose. I want you to
point out Mr. Milam if you see him here.
A There he is {pointing) *
Q And do you see Mr. Bryant in here?
A (The witness pointed with his hand)
Q All right * - about how big a porch is this there on
the front of your house. Uncle Mose? How wide is it?
A It ought to be something like about nine feet.
Q You would say it is about nine feet wide, is that'
right?
A Yes, sir.
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Q And does that plorch run the full length of your
house?
A That’s right. ;
Q That is, it runs the length of those two front rooms,
is that right?
A That ’ s right .
Q And I believe you have already testified that it is
a screened-in porch, is that right?
I
A That’s right..
Q Now tell the jury. Uncle Mose, when you opened the
door and looked out at that time, and you saw Mr. Bryant
and Mr. Milam there, where were they standing?
MR. BRELAND: We object to that. Your Honor. He said
that he didn’t recognize them out there. He said he just
saw the flashlight.
THE COURT: The objection will be sustained. The wit-
ness stated that he didn’t recognize Mr. Bryant at that time.
Q when did you see those two men that night?
A That was about two o'clock in the morning.
Q But did you see them before you opened the door or
after?
A It was after I opened the door.
0 And where were they standing?
A Mr. Milam was standing there at the door, and there was
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one man standing at the screen door, and Mr. Bryant was
standing kind of out away from the door.
MR. BRELAND: We object to that, if the Court please.
He said that he didn't recognize him. i;
THE COURT: I believe the witness has. stated that h'e
did not see Mr. Bryant, that he didn’t see him out there
that night because it was dark. :
THE WITNESS: I saw him but I couldn't see his face.
THE COURT: The objection will be sustained. He has
stated that he didn't recognize Mr. Bryant.
MR. BRELAND: And we would like to ask the jury to
disregard that statement.
THE COURT: You gentlemen of the jury will disregard
the statement made by the witness about Mr'. Bryant at this
time.
Q When this man first called out to you that night.
Uncle Mose, did he tell you who it was?
A Yes , Si r .
Q And who did he tell you it was?
A He said he was Mr. Bryant.
0 And do you see the man here in this courtroom now
who was standing on your porch that night that said he was ;
Mr. Bryant?
A Yes, Sir.
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MR. BRELAND: We object to that. Your Honor. He s'aid
that he didn't recognize him-
THE COURT: The objection at- this time will be sus-
tained unless the witness can say that he was able to iden- ’!
tify him and recognized him that night.
Q Now, Uncle Mose, what did you say J. W. Milam had in
his hand that night when you saw him there on your porch?
A He had a pistol in his right hand.
Q And what else did he have?
A And he had a flashlight in his left hand.
Q And what did he say to you?
A Well, he asked me if I had two boys there from
Q And what did you say?
A I said, "Yes, Sir. "
Q And will you tell the jury who those boys were?
A Wheeler Parker, my grandson, and Emmett Till.
0 How long had they been visiting in your home with
Q No, Uncle Mose, after you told Mr. Milam that you
did have two boys there from Chicago, and that they were
there in your house, what did he say and do then?
A Then Mr. Milam said, "I want that boy that done the
talking down at Money . "
Chicago?
you .
A They was there a week that same day.
12
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0 And what did he do?
A Well, we went right over to the east room, the ’front
room there, and 1 called, and he wasn't in there* )
Q When you say who do you mean by that? Who
was there then?
A Mr. Milam and Mr. Bryant.
MR* BRELAND: We object to that, Your Honor. And we
ask that his statement be excluded,
Q At any time after you first saw the man with Mr.
I Milam that you first could not recognize, did you later on
recognize him in or about your house as being a man that you ■
knew? Did you ever recognize him that night?
A That is the first time I remember seeing him. !■
Q Where was the first time you remember seeing, him?
A In my hou se,
Q The first time you ever saw him was in your house?
A That 1 s right .
Q And who was that man?
A Mr . Milam.
Q And who else did you see in -your house?
A Mr. Bryant.
MR. BRELAND: Now just a moment, please - - -
THE COURT: Let Mr. Chatham ask. a further question ,
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44A-JN-30112, 62D- JN-30045 - FD302
mimuation of FD-302 of TRANSCR I PT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sept 1955 . On . Page 17
Q Did you at any time that night recognize Mr. Bryant
as one of the men in your house?
A , Yes, Sir .
MR. BRELAND:- We object to that, Your Honor. That is
just a repetition of the question.
THE COURT: The objection will be overruled there. I
believe he stated he didn't recognize him at first. Now let’s '
find out if he ever did recognize anyone there that he could
identify as Mr. Bryant.
•' i Q Uncle Mose , do you see any man in this courtroom now
who was with Mr. Milam that night at your house?
A Yes, Sir.
MR. BRELAND: We object to that, if the court please.
That is purely a leading question, and having the party here
present at this time and sitting in the courtroom, that
would not be a proper identification anyway. And his state- ;
ment to begin with, he said that he never recognized him.
THE COURT: I believe he said he didn’t recognize him at
the door. Ttie objection will be overruled at this time.
Q And will you point that man out. Uncle Mose?
A Yes , Sir .
Q Well, point him out for the benefit of the jury.
: 1 ( A Yes , Sir .
0 And who was that man?
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A It was Mr. Bryant, he told me he was, i
Q Now, after Mr. Milam and Mr. Bryant got in your
i
house that night, tell the jury what you did. ■
A Well, we went to this first room, we went to the
first bed there, and Emmett Till wasn’t in there. And so I
walked out the door into the side room there. Of course,
there wasn't anyone sleeping in the first room. And then
I passed another door, and in this second room there, we
found him and Simon in bed. i-
Q Now, what, if anything, was said, by Mr. Milam or Mr.
Bryant to Emmett Till?
A Well, before we entered into the room, Mr. Milam said,
"If this is not the right boy, then we are going to bring him
back. If it is not the right boy, we are going to bring him ;
back and put him in the bed."
Q Did you ask them what they wanted with the boy? ;
A No, Sir, I sure didn't.
0 And what did they do then?
A Then we come on to where this boy was in the room
there, and he was there in the bed, and they -told him to get
up ,
Q Who did?
A Mr. Milam said for him to get up.
0 And what did he have in his hand then?
A He had the pistol and the flashlight. ! ■ 15
i '
)-302a (Rev IO-$-951
44A* JN-3 0112 , 62D-JN- 30045 -FD302
Mfmwtioa of FD-302 of TRANSCRI PT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sept. 19SS . On , Rage 19
Q And what did Emmett Till do?
A He got up and dressed. He sat on the side of the
bed and dressed -
Q And what happened after that. Uncle Mose?
V A Well, when he got up, and they started out, then he
y: asked me if I know anybody there and I told him, “No, Sir,
%
I don ‘ t know you . "
•£ And then he said to me, "Row old are you?" And then
I said, "Sixty four." And then he said, "Well, if you know
* ) any of us here tonight, 1 then you will never live to get to
be Sixty five.”
0
And was that- in. the room where Emmett was
in bed? .
A
That * s right .
0
And then did they leave out of your house
with Emmett
Till?
A
That's right.
Q
Did they go out the same way they came in?
When they
left your house, did you go back to the door the same way you
came in?
A No, Sir. We went through some room there, you know,
the door was open, and we went through this other bedroom
there. That is where we went through on the way back.
Q Was that the room where you and your wife sleep? 1
A Yes, Sir.
16
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Q And when you went through that room, did either
Mr. Bryant or Mr. Milam have anything to say to your wife?
A Yes, Sir, they did.
0 And what did they say?
A Well, she had gotten up out of bed, and then he said
to her, "You get back in that bed, and I mean, I want to hear
the springs,"
Q He said that he wanted to hear the springs?
A That ‘ s right .
) Q And what did she do then?
A Well, she got back in bed.
Q And did Mr. Milam still have the pistol in his hand
then?
A He kept it in his hand all the time.
Q Before you got out of the house. Uncle Mose, or be-
fore Mr. Milam or Mr. Bryant got out of the house with Emmett
Till, 1 want you to tell the jury if either you or your wife
tried to induce them not to carry the boy out.
A Yes, Sir.
Q What did you or your wife say to them?
A MR. CARLTON : We object to that. Your Honor. That
would be hearsay testimony.
THE COURT: If anything was said it would have been in
the presence of the defendants. The objection is overruled.
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Q Go ahead. Uncle Mose, and tell us what was said. ■
A Well, my wife, she said that we will pay you what-
ever you want to charge if you will just release him. She
said that we would pay them for whatever he might have done
if they would just let him go.
Q And what did they say?
A They didn’t say a word.
Q And did they remain there after that?
A We'll, just for a few minutes, and then they walked
I out :
0 Where did they go? !
A They entered a car and drove off towards Money.
Q And what did you do. Uncle Mose? Did you go to the
front door when they went out of the house?
MR. BREUAND: We object to that. That is a leading
question.
THE COURT: I want to ask all counsel to please refrain
from leading questions so far as possible.
MR. CHATHAM: I am sure that rule will work both ways.
Your Honor .
THE COURT: That applies to all counsel.
0 Uncle Mose, after Mr. Milam and Mr. Bryant left out
1 of your house that night with Emmett Till, what did you do?
A Well, I came out towards the screen door, and I
1 . soil (Rev. 10-6-95)
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Page
stood there on the porch.
Q Is that the screen door on the porch' which you des-
cribed at the beginning of your testimony?
A That’s right.
0 And from that point, could you see out near the iroad
in front of your house?
A I couldn’t see very clear because there wasn’t no
1 ight .
Q What, if anything, did you see out there when Mr.
Milam and Mr. Bryant took Emmett Till out in front of your
house?
A I saw a car moving off towards Money.
0 And which way was that car parked?
A It was parked towards Money.
0 Before Mr. Milam and Mr. Bryant got to the car with
Emmett Till, did you hear them make any statement or ask any-
body out there any question in that car?
A I sure did.
Q Will you tell the jury what that was? .
A They asked if this was the boy, and someone said.
"Yes.
0 Was that a man’s voice or a lady's voice you heard?
A It seemed like it was a lighter voice than a man's.
Q Did you say i t seemed like a louder voice?
19
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^ptioaniioit of Fl>3m of TRANSCRI PT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sept 1955 . On . , V'agc 23
X ■
I A Lighter.
Q And what did they do with Emmett Till after they re -
^ ceived that response from the person who was in the car?
MR . BRELAND : I f he knows , Your Honor .
1 THE WITNESS:- Then they drove off towards Money,
= 0 Do you know what kind of an automobile' it was?
A No, Sir. They didn't turn on no lights. I just heard
| it and I kind of saw it there in the dark. It was kind of
dark, you know, and there was no lights on it.
j,( } Q The lights weren't burning on the car?
; A No, Sir .
0 Did you watch the car as it drove off towards Money?
A Well, I stood on the porch there for maybe twenty min-
utes or more.
Q As far as you know, did they ever turn on any lights
on the car?
A I never did see it.
Q Where is the next house situated and what is the.
closest house from your place in going towards Money?
A I reckon it is about two hundred yards from there.
Q Mr . Frederick lives up that way, is that right ?
A That's right.
0 And the closest house from you is about two hundred
yards going towards Money?
2 0
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44A-JN-301L2, 62D- JN- 3004 5 - FD302
'oniioualioti of F 0*302 of TRANSCRI PT -EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sept 19^ : On .Cage 24
A Yes , Sir .
Q And what about any house in the other direction?
A I guess about half the distance.
Q In other words, there is no other house close by
you, is that right?
A That's right.
Q Now, Uncle Mose, have you since that night ever seen
.Emmett Till alive?
A No, Sir.
j . Q Did Mr. Bryant or Mr. Milam ever bring him back to
your house that night? .
A No, Sir, they haven't.
Q Or have they ever brought him back?
A No, Sir.
Q Now tell the Court and Jury when was the next time
after they took Emmett Till away from your house that you
saw him or his body.
A I saw him when he was taken out of the river. He
was in a boat then. I don't know just which day it was.
Q Was that on the Wednesday following the Saturday
night that they took him away from your house?
A That's right.
Q And when you saw Emmett Till there, was he living or
dead?
21
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A He was dead.
Q Where was Emmett's body there at the point in the
river where you went when you first saw him after that?
A They had him in a boat. He was in a boat there.
Q And who was there handling the boat, if you remember?
. A They already had him out. There wasn't anyone
handling it when I got there. It was already on shore.
Q It was already on the shore when you got there?
A That's right.
0 And who went with you over there, Uncle Mose?
A It was . the Deputy Sheriff, I think. I don’t know the
There was two of them.
MR. BRELAND: We object to his stating what he doeesn't
MR. CHATHAM: The old man is endeavoring to tell the
Do you object to that?
THE COURT: Counsel will please direct all remarks to
the Court. These side remarks to each other are not necess-
ary.
Q Then you don't know the Sheriff of this County?
A 3 just know him since I have been here is all.
Q Well, was Mr. Strader there?
A He sure was.
Q Do you know Mr. Garland Melton, one of his deputies?
)
names .
know .
truth.
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44A-JN-30U2, 62D- JN- 3004 5 - FD302
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iiinuaiiixi *( FO-342 of TRANSCRI PT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sept 1955 .On 26
A I sure know him, too.
Q Was he there?
A Yes, Sir,
Q And was there a lot of more white people . there?
A Yes, Sir. t
Q And were there two or three young boys there?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Who came and notified you to come up there, that
there might have been some person there for you to see?
j A It was the Deputy Sheriff from Greenwood. 1 don’t
know his name.
Q You don’t know whether it would have been Mr. John
Ed Cothran or not?
A Well, I know Mr. Smith, the Sheriff. It wasn't Mr.
Smith.
Q Who did you carry with you when you went up there?
did any members of your family go up there with you?
A No, Sir.
Q When you got there, was the body of Emmett Till laying
on the bank?
A It . was in a boat .
Q I want you to tell the jury whether or not you could
tell whose body i t was?
A Yes, Sir.
i
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^ 44 A- JN- 30112, 62D- JN- 3004 5-FD302
>m i nuai ion ofFDOO? of TRAJ1SCR1_PX_- EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sg. nf 1 4>SS , On ' Page 27
Q And who was it?
A Etnme 1 1 T i 1 1 .
Q During the time you were there where you first saw
the body, did you notice whether or not the undertaker or
any Deputy Sheriff took a ring off of Emmett's finger?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And was that ring taken off his finger in your pres-
ence?
A That ’ s right .
' ’) Q What did you do after that, uncle Mose, with refer-
ence to the body?
A What is that?
Q What did you do after that with reference to Emmett's
body? What did you do with his body?
A Well, we taken it back. The undertaker man took it
back to Greenwood .
0 And what undertaker man was that. Uncle Mose?
A Mr. Miller.
Q Is that Chester Miller?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And he is the undertaker man over at Greenwood?
A That ' s right .
Q And he is the man who took the body from the point on
the river where you first saw it there?
24
FD-j02a (Rev. 10-6-95)
<1 4 A - JN -30112, 62D- JN - 3004 5-FD3 02
Coniinuaunn of FO-302 nf TRANSCRI PT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sept 1955 . On 28
A That ' s right .
Q And where was it that you next saw Emmett's body
after Chester Miller took it away from the river?
A After he took it away from the river, I didn't see
it any more.
Q Did you supervise the arrangements for the burial of
Emmett ’ s body?
A That's right.
Q And where did you have it sent?
i A At Money. Where I live, we have a church and grave-
J
yard there.
Q And did they bury the body there?
A They sure didn't.
Q What did they do with the body?
A They carried it back to Greenwood.
MR. BRELAND; We object, Your Honor. He has already said
that he didn't see it any more.
THE COURT: The witness can only state what he knows,
Mr . Chatham.
t
Q Did you give any instructions to the Sheriff; or to the
undertaker man, or to anybody as to where the body should be
sent for burial?
A That ' s right .
Q And where was that?
25
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Ltmuanon of FMflJ of TRANSCRIPT -EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sect 1955 , Oo , Pag* 29
t
< - A At Money .
Q But you say they didn't bury the body at Money? .
A They sure didn't.
Q Well, did you give anyone instructions as to where
the body was to be sent for burial?
A Yes, Sir. I called the boy's Grandmother in -Chicago,
and she told me - - -
MR. BRELAND: We object to that. Your Honor.
THE COURT: The witness cannot repeat any conversation
i ’) that was not made in the presence of the defendants.
0 After you had this conversation, what instructions
did you give as to where the body was to be sent for burial?
A I said not to carry it to Greenwood and bury the
body there, and I made other arrangements.
Q Did you give the undertaker man there at Greenwood
any instructions as to where he was to send the body?
.A MR. BRELAND: We object. Your Honor. He said that he
didn't see the undertaker.
THE COURT: I don’t think he testified as to that. I
think he said that he had not seen the body after it had
been taken away .
MR. BRELAND; Well, find out if he saw the undertaker.
' ' MR . CHATHAM : Mr . Breland , we will conduct this examin-
ation, if you don't mind.
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irKtintaiiun of FD-302 of TRAN SCR 1 PT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sent 19S5 , On ■ . **ag< 30
THE COURT: You gentlemen will have to direct your
remarks to me.
Q Uncle Mose, what I am trying to get at is this:
Where does Emmett's Mother live?
A In Chicago.
Q Now will you tell the jury whether or not, whether
you gave any instructions to anyone to send the body up to
Chicago?
MR. BRELAND: We object to that. We object to the ;
} leading form of the question.
THE COURT: Will you rephrase your question, Mr. Chat-
ham?
Q After the body had been brought to Money, where did
you tell the undertaker to send the body from Money?
MR. BRELAND: We object to that. Your Honor. He hasn-' t
said he told him anything about that.
THE COURT: If he told him, he can testify to that.
Q Did you tell the undertaker where to send the body?
A I didn ' t .
Q Now, Uncle Mose, getting back to the point where you
saw Emmett's body there on the river, what river was that?
A Tallahatchie .
0 Will you give the jury some idea as to about where
on Tallahatchie River the body was when you saw it that
Wednesday morning?
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.nnnuauon ofKO-302 of TRANSCRIPT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sect 1955 .On .Pa-e 31
A It was in a boat and the boat was out of the water.
0 And was it between some towns? What communities
or towns was it between or near?
A It was between Philipp and Tippo.
Q And you stated you were present there when Miller
took the ring off of Emmett's finger?
A I was looking right at him, that's right.
Q And what did Miller do with that ring?
A He put it on the seat there when he taken it off.
Q Do you mean the seat in the funeral coach?
A That's right.
0 Was that ring ever given to you?
A That's right. I asked for it.
0 When did you ask for it?
A Shortly after they got the body in the coach.
Q And did he give it to you?
A That’s right.
0 Now I hand you a ring. Uncle Mose, and I ask you to
tell the Court and Jury if that is the ring that Chester
Miller took off of Emmett's finger and gave to you that
morning?
A Yes , Sir, it is.
0 How long did you keep the ring after that?
A Until we got home.
Q And then what did you do with it?
23
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H
M
A I gave it to the Sheriff .
- Q Sheriff who?
A To the Deputy, I don't know his name.
Q Was that a Deputy in this County?
A LeFlore County.
Q And until today that is the last time you saw this
ring, is that right?
A That’s right.
0 And you say you gave it to the Deputy in LeFlore
5 County?
A That’s right.
MR. CHATHAM. TAKE THE WITNESS.
CROSS EXAMINATION
BY MR. CARLTON:
Q Mose, I believe you testified on direct examination
that Emmett was sleeping in the east room right behind your
bedroom , is that correct ?
A That ’ s right .
Q And also that he was in the bed with your son, Simon?
A That's right.
Q Who was next to the wall in that bed?
A Si mon .
Q And how close was the side of the bed where Emmett
pft
Pi
p
m
was to the doorway into your room?
29
-
: ' ■
i
■'(3-.»02i (Rev 10-6-95)
7
44 A- JN- 30 1 12 , 62D-JN- 30045- FD3 02
|
I
of f-D-302 of TRANSCRI PT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL iggg . On
I
. ■ 3 3
A The head of the bed wsa jammed up against the wall
and the door was right there.
Q And who else, was asleep in that room?
A Robert and Maurice.
Q I believe on direct examination, he testified there
was nobody in there but Simon and Emmett.
A Well, that is the way it was. They was in there
with Emmett .
Q Do you mean you are changing your story now from
f j what you said awhile ago?
A I didn't say it.
Q You didn't say that those were the only two in that
room?
A They was the only two in the bed, and I didn't say
in the room
Q Well, who else was in the room?
A Robert and Maurice. They was both in the bed.
Q Those are both your boys?
A That ' s right .
0 How old are they?
A Robert is fourteen and Maurice, is sixteen.
0 When they came to your house that night, as you say,
and called out, "Preacher - - Preacher", where was Mr.
Milam?
3 0
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A He was standing right- at the door.
Q And as soon as you opened the door, you saw him?
A That 1 s right .
Q Now, will you get up and show the jury just how he
had the pistol and the flashlight in his hands, as you say?
A He had the pistol right in this hand (indicating) .
Q He had the pistol in his right hand?
A Yes, Sir.
0 And how did he have the flashlight?
A In this hand (indicating) .
Q And he had the flashlight in his left hand, is that
right?
A
Q
A
Q
front of the
A
Q
A
0
A
, Q
A
Yes, Sir.
And where was the- flashlight pointed?
It was out like this (indicating with his hand).
Do you mean it was out in' front of his body, in
other hand in which you say he had the pistol?
That ' s right .
Was there any light in your house that night?
No light .
Did anybody ask you to turn on a light?
No, Sir - - Well, they asked me to.
Did anybody ask you to turn on- the lights?
Yes, Sir.
31
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t
I
f
, Page 3 5
Q But you didn’t turn on the lights?
A No, Sir, :
Q Were there ever any lights turned on in your house
while those men were in there?
A No, Sir.
Q How many flashlights were in there, in your house
that night?
A I didn't see but one.
Q And where did he keep that flashlight while he was in
your house?
A It was right in his hand.
Q He held it right in front of him all the time?
A That 's right .
Q Did he ever turn it up and shine it in his face?
MR. CHATHAM: In whose face?
Q Did he ever turn it in his own face?
A Well, he had it something like that when we was
going through the house (indicating with his hand} .
0 Who was in front of you as you were going through
the house?
A Well, me and Mr. Milam was side by side,
Q And this other man was behind you, is that right?
A He was behind.
Q And did he always keep the flashlight out in front
of him?
32
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A That ' s right .
0 Did he ever shine it in his face?
A Well, I could see from the light, you know, how it
will shine out from the side like that.
Q But did he shine it in Emmett’s face?
A Yes, Sir, he did.
Q Did he ever shine it in Simon's face?
A I don't know about that. He was on the back there.
Q When you went in the room where Emmett was, was
> ) Emmett asleep?
A That's right.
Q Who wakened him up?
A He- told him to get up and put his clothes on.
Q Did he have anything on at the time when he was in
bed? Was he sleeping with clothes on?
A I think he had on his shorts and maybe a shirt. I
don’t think he had pajamas.
Q And when he told him to get up and put his clothes
on, what did he put on then?
A He put on a shirt and trousers.
0 Did he put on any shoes?
A Yes, Sir.
■ Q And he got dressed, did he?
A That’s right.
3
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Q What kind of clothes did he put on?
A I, can't remember what kind.
Q Well, you stated that you were there looking at
him, didn't you?
A That ’ s right -
0 And you were standing right there, weren't you?
A That ' s right .
Q And there Mr. Milam was standing there in front of
your door, when you opened your door that night, you saw
\ ) him right there at that time, did you?
A That ' S right .
Q And where was this other man that you say was there
who went through the house with you?
A He was standing back behind Mr. Milam.
Q Could you see him standing there then?
A No, Sir, I didn't see him right then,
Q Then how could you see him when you say that you- saw
him standing back there then?
A Well, he was on the porch.
Q But the light wasn ' t on, was it?
A That 's right .
Q When you opened the door and saw Mr. Milam there
( and saw this other man standing behind him, could you see
the car out there then?
! 03a (Rev IM-95)
44A-JN- 30112 , 62D*oN- 30045 - FD302
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A No, Sir, I didn't see the car.
Q Well, how could you see the man standing back there
if you couldn't see the car?
A Well, like I said, he was up on the porch.
Q And you say the light wasn’t on?
A That's right.
0 But it was so dark out there that you couldn’t see
the car?
A I couldn't see the car out in the road, no.
\ q was there anybody else there at that time?
A There was one man who stood there at the screen
door .
0 How was he standing?
A Well, he was standing kind of with his head down
like this here (demonstrating) peering. He was trying to
hide, it looked like.
0 In other words, you think he was trying to hide to
keep you from seeing him?
A That's right.
Q And I believe you told me before that you thought
he was a colored man, isn't that right?
A He acted like a colored man.
\ 1 q Where was this second man when you walked into this
other room, this other front room?
*1
I
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_ . 39
-
Utr.
A Well, all three of them was almost together.
Q Who was in that other bedroom near the company room?
A There was Wheeler Parker, my grandson, and Curtis
Jones .
V
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Q And when you started through the house, you looked
at them, did you?
A That’s right.
Q Well, how did you know what boy they were looking
for?
A I heard someone say that this boy had done some-
thing, or had done some talking down at Money. I think
that was on Thursday or maybe Friday.
Q You already knew about it, did you?
A That’s right.
Q Had you talked to Emmett about it?
A I sure did.
MR. SMITH: We object to that, if the Court please.
THE COURT: The objection is sustained.
Q Did you punish Emmett for that?
MR. SMITH: We object. Your Honor.
THE COURT: The objection is sustained.
Q When you went into the company room, you went into
the second room on the east side, is that right?
A The South side.
>•302.1 I Rev Hi-6-Vi)
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0 And that would have been the side towards Money,
is that right?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And there is a door going from the company room
into that room, is that right?
A That ’ s right .
Q And there is no door between your room and the
company room?
A That's right.
Q There is a chimney there, isn't that right?
A That ' s right .
Q And there are some pictures there on the mantel,
is that right?
A That 1 s right .
Q Whose pictures are on the mantel there?
MR. SMTIH: We object to that, Your Honor. That has
nothing to do with this case at all. It has no bearing
on this matter whatsoever.
THE COURT: Unless it is shown to be pertinent to this .
trial, the objection is sustained.
Q Was there anybody sleeping in the second room there
at all?
| !
A There sure wasn't.
Q That is a bedroom there too, isn’t it?
■
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44A-JN-30112, 62D- JN-30045-FD302
PSWoffD-302 Of TRANSCRIPT-EMMETT TILL TRIAL _SfiPt 1955 . On , p^t — 41
■ A That ’ & right .
|i;. Q And then you go from that room into the room where
| Emmett was sleeping?
f-. • A That ’ s right .
I .
l£ 0 And back of that room in your house, back from where
T Emmett was, you go into a place which is something like a
i.
I
hallway, between there and the dining room, isn't that
T
j; right?
A That’s right.
S . x ■
L( ) Q And there is a little place in there on the east
side between the dining room and the kitchen, isn't that
right?
A That's right.
Q And the kitchen is over on the left side as you are
going through there?
A Yes, Sir. '
Q By the way, do you have electricity there?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And you have an electric refrigerator, do you?
A Yes*, Sir.
0 And you also have electric lights, do you?
A Yes,, Sir.
Q And you say that one of the men asked you to turn
the lights on that night?
3S
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A Yes, Sir.
Q But you still didn't turn the lights on?
A I sure didn ’ t .
Q Did you ever see this man that you pointed out as
Mr. Bryant, did you ever see the light shining on his face
that night?
A 1 did not ..
Q Had you ever seen him before that night?
*
A Not to know him.
] Q Had you ever been in his store?
A I never have.
0 And the first time you ever saw him was in the court
room this week, wasn’t it?
A The first time I saw his face, that’s right.
Q Now, let’s go back to Mr. Milam - - you testified
that he was standing in the doorway of your house with a
pistol in his right hand and a flashlight out in front of
him in his left hand, is that correct?
A That's right.
Q And the flashlight was sticking out in front about
six or eight inches, about six or eight inches in front of
the pistol, is that right?
' A I don't know about that. I didn't measure it.
0 Had you ever seen Mr. Milam before that night?
P=T"”
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A I never had.
Q Did you ever see the lights flashing on his face
that night?
A Sure. He had it up to his face. That is the way
I know him.
Q Mose, you talked to me over at this law office over
here (pointing with his hand) last week, is that right?
A That's right.
Q And do you remember this gentleman here, Mr. Breland,
(' \ being present at that time?
{ )
A Yes, Sir.
Q And do you remember Mr. Henderson being present there
that day (indicating another gentleman)?
A That's right.
Q And this gentleman over there in the blue coat, Mr.
Kellum, was he present that day also?
A That's right.
Q You remember him being there, do you?
\ Yes, Sir.
Q And isn’t it a fact, Mose , that you on that day told
each one of those gentlemen and me that the- only reason you
thought this was Mr. Milam in your house that night was due
I « to the fact that he was a big man and had a bald head? Isn't
that true?
40
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A That ' s right .
Q And the first time that you ever saw him was in this
courthouse later on when they came into the courtroom, isn't
that right?
A I don't believe I understand.
Q The first time you ever saw him was in this court-
room, isn't that right?
A No Sir. I knowed him that night.
Q And the reason you say you know him is because the
) man had a bald head, isn't that right?
A Well, I noticed his face and his stature. And I
knowed his face just like I see him there now.
Q Then you have changed your story from what you told
us the other day, haven't you?
A They was at my house.
Q And the only thing you saw at your house, the only
man you saw, was a bald headed man, is that right?
A That's right.
0 Mose, isn't it a fact that before you saw Mr. Milam
up here, you saw Mr. Milam's picture in the newspapers, that
is, before he came in here and you saw him up here? Isn't
that true?
A I don't know whether I have or not. I can't remember.
Q Now isn't it a fact that you told me and these other-
41
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44 A- JN- 301 12 , 62D- JN-30045 -FD302
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gentlemen here last week that you saw him in the newspaper
before you saw him here in the courtroom?
A 1 don’t remember saying that.
Q Do you deny that?
A I don ' t remember .
Q what were Emmett's initials, Mose?
A I don’t know.
Q Are his initials "L . T. 11 ?
.Page
45
j
A That is his Daddy's name, Louis Till.
Q But are they Emmett's initials?
A That is Louis Till, his Father's initials.
0 But they are not Emmett's initials, is that right?
A That * s right .
Q Now, you say you saw a car out there when you first
came out on the porch, and you say you saw it first when
they went out there with Emmett, is that right?
A I saw it when they went out there with the boy.
I could see something black up on the road.
Q But you say you couldn't see a car out there on the
road when you first opened the door?
A That ' s right .
Q But you could see a man standing out there?
A When I first came on the porch there, sure, 1 saw him.
Q Now, this car you say you saw out there afterwards.
42
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was the car pulled up to your porch or was it out on the
road?
A It was in the space between the road and my house.
Q It wasn't up in the gravel road, was it?
A No, Sir.
Q And it is just about fifty feet out to the gravel
road, isn't that right?
A It is something like that.
Q And what kind of trees are in the yard there?
A Cedar trees and Persimmon trees.
Q And those trees are about thirty or forty feet from
the road, isn't that right?
A No, Sir.
Q Then how far are they?
A I guess about maybe ten or twelve feet, something
like that.
0 Is there plenty of room for a car to pull off there?
A There is plenty of room for a car. I park there.
Q And you saw the car parked there, did you?
A When it pulled off.
0 Then you didn’t see a car before it pulled off?
A I didn’t see it before he pulled off.
Q Then you didn't see Emmett get into the car, did you?
A I didn't see that.
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MR. CHATHAM: If the Court please, I would like to ask
Mr. Carlton to please give the Witness time to answer his
questions.
THE COURT: The Witness will have plenty of opportunity
to answer the questions. And X must ask Counsel to direct
all remarks to the Court .
Q You didn't see Emmett get into the car, did you?
A I did not .
0 And you didn't see anybody put him in the car, did
( ) you?
A I did not.
Q And you did not see either one of these men who were
at ydur house get into the car, did you?
A I did not .
Q And you didn't see anybody in that car when it drove
off, did you?
A I did not.
Q Did you see any headlights on the car?
A There wasn't no lights on.
0 Did you see any tail light on the car?
A I did not .
Q When they opened the door to get in the car, did any
1 ight s turn on?
A I didn ' t see it .
44
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44A- JN-30 1 12 , 62D-JN-30045-FD302
Continuation „f FD-302 of TRANS CRI PT - EMMETT TILL TRIAL .Sept 1955 . On . 4
Q How many folks were in that car?
A I don * t know .
Q Was this voice you say you heard out there the
voice, of one of these three men you had already seen there?
A It was just a voice. They took him out there, and
somebody said, "Is this him?" and then a voice said, "Yes."
But it wasn't one of them.
Q And the only reason you thought Mr. Bryant was there
that night was because somebody came up there and told you
: j or said that
he was Mr. Bryant, is that right?
A
That's right.
0
How old is Emmett Till?
A
Fourteen.
Q
What grade was he in?
A
The 9th.
Q
And how did he walk? Did he walk natural?
A
He walked right.
0
Did he walk good?
A
That ' s right .
0
And how did he talk?
A
Well, he had a stammering speech. Sometimes he
couldn ' t get a word out .
Q Did you understand him all right?
A Yes , when he got it out .
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Q And he could make you understand him, is that right?
A That * s right .
Q And how tall was he?
A Well, it looked like Emmett was about five feet and
Q And how much did he weigh?
A One hundred and fifty.
Q Did he look like he was pretty well grown? Was he a
Q When this car drove off from there that night, how
many people were in there when it drove off?
A I don ’ t know .
Q Well, you say you stood there and watched it drive
A Yes, Sir.
Q Was the moon shining?
A It was not.
Q There was no light there at all?
A No light .
Q And you didn’t turn on the lights in your house?
A That 1 s right .
Q And you say you stood there for about twenty minutes
three or four inches.
pretty good sized man?
A He looked like a man.
off, is that right?
before you did anything?
(
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44A-JN- 30112 , 62D- JN-3G045- FD302
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A That's right.
Q Now, let's go up there to the morning on the river,
Mose. When you went up there, how many folks were in the
car that you went up there in?
A
There was three.
Q
Do you know who. they were?
A
I don’t know their names. They said it was the
Deputy Sheriff of Greenwood; Mr. Cothran, I think
Q
Did you stop anywhere on your way up there?
i A
We stopped at Philipp.
0
why did you stop there?
A
They stopped to inquire where the body was?
Q
You stopped there at Philipp and then you went on up
the road to where the body was?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And you went with them up there?
A I sure did.
Q When they parked the car there, what did you do? •
A We all got out and walked down to the river.
Q You got out of the car and then walked down awavs
to go down to the river where the body was?
A Yes.
0 Could you see the body in the river?
A I couldn't see good. It was in the boat.
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Q There wasn't any trees or anything
where the car was parked to where the body was,
right?
♦ Fagt
like that from
is that
51
A Yes, Sir.
0 And you could look to where the body was from where
the car was parked?
A Yes, Sir.
0 And did you walk down to where the body was with Mr.
Cothran?
A I sure did.
Q And did he ask you on the way down there if that
looked like the boy's body?
A I can't remember now whether he did or not.
0 Then you were close to him, were you, when you first
decided it was Emmett's body?
A I was standing right up over him.
Q And you didn't say anything to him when you were about
fifteen or twenty yards back from the boat, you didn't say
that it looked like him when you were that distance away?
A I don * t remember .
0 You didn't tell Mr. Cothran that before you got down
to the boat .
A I don't remember.
Q Do you mean to say that you did not tell him that. it
!ii (Rev IO-6-V\')
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looked like Emmett when you were some distance away before
you reached the boat?
A I can * t remember .
Q On the river down there, what was done with the boat?
A What was that?
Q Was the boat still in the water?
A It was out of the water.
0 It was out of the water just like it had been pulled
A It was just kind of pulled out, Yes, Sir.
Q And how was the body in the boat there?
A It was in the boat.
Q Well, was it laying face down or on its back?
A On its face.
Q And what part of his body was up cowards you as you
A His head.
Q And all you could see lying there in the boat was
A They turned him over, and then I saw all of it.
Q Now wait just a minute, Mose - - when you fiz'st came
up there, all you saw was just the head and back, is that
right?
out on the bank out of the water?
were coming up there to the boat?
just his head and back, is that right?
A That's right.
nfev. .10-6-95)
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n
Q When you got down there, did you have any conver-
sation with the officers there after that as to whether
that was Emmett or not?
A I can * t remember .
Q Who turned the body over?
A I can't remember that either. But someone turned it.
Q Someone turned the body over, is that right?
A That ' s right .
Q And then you looked at him, did you?
A That's right. That is when I began viewing him.
Q And you were sure that was Emmett Till?
A That’s right.
Q When did you first see this ring?
A The same day that he was taken out there, I saw him
on the boat there, and that is the first time I seen the
ring.
Q As I understand, you brought him down from Chicago
with you didn't you?
A Yes, Sir.
0 And you brought him down on the train with you, is
that riaht?
A That ’ s right .
Q And I believe, as I understand it, you left there on
Saturday morning and arrived Saturday afternoon, is that
50
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44A-JN-30112, 62D-JN- 30045* FD302
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correct?
A That 1 s right .
Q Then you saw him with that ring, didn't you?
A Well, he didn't wear it all the time. He didn't
wear it every day. I think they had to put some tape around
it, or something. It was too big.
0 Do you mean to say that he was there in your home all
week and you didn't see that ring?
A I sure didn ’ t .
Q Then you had never seen that ring before?
A No, Sir
Q Did it have tape on it then?
A It didn’t then.
Q But you say it was too big?
A That’s right.
Q Just how do you know that is was too big?
A Well, I know when they got it off his finger, well,
it was all swollen, and it was slipping off then.
Q But you didn't really know it was too big, did you?
A It was too large.
Q But you had never seen it before, is that right?
A I never seen it .
i Q And you don’t know of your own knowledge that it was
Emmett’s ring, do you?
51
Q Somebody told you it was his ring, is that right?
A Simon and Robert told me.
MR. CARLTON: I would like to ask the Court to disregard
that .
MR. BRELAND: If Your Honor please, we ask the Court
to instruct the jury to disregard the statement that he
j knew it was Emmett's ring.
THE COURT: You gentlemen will disregard the statement
that he made where he said that he knew it was Emmett’s ring.
MR. SMITH: If the Court please, Mr. Carlton asked the
witness the question, himself, and the witness was just
replying to his question.
THE COURT: Will you ask the question over again, Mr.
Carlton. I didn't get the response to that particular
quest ion .
MR. CARLTON: Inasmuch as the Court has told or instructed
the jury to disregard his last statement, 1 will pursue
another line of questioning.
Q Now, Mose, you say that the only reason you identified
1 that man there that night as being Mr. Bryant is that he
said he was Mr. Bryant, is that right?
52
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A That 1 s right .
Q And you also say that, the only reason you identified
Mr. Milam as being there that night is the fact that he is
a big man and bald headed, is that right?
A That ’ s right .
Q Now, Mose, isn't it a fact that you told these
same four gentlemen that I have pointed out previously - -
those three gentlemen over there and myself - - that you
told them that the only reason that you could identify that
\ body in the boat as being Emmett Till was because he was
smooth faced?
Isn't it a fact that you said because the body didn't
have any whiskers and was smooth faced, and because Emmett
was missing, then you identified that body there in the
boat as being Emmett Till? Isn't that correct?
A I didn't mention no missing.
Q Mose, do you deny that you made this statement to
Mr. Breland, Mr. Henderson, Mr. Kellum and me that the only
reason you could identify that body in the boat as being
Emmett Till was because he was clean faced or smooth faced,
and because Emmett Till was missing.
A I did not say it .
{ Q You did not make that statement?
A No, Sir, I did not make it.
53
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Q Mose, when you were talking to those four defense
lawyers over there in Mr. Breland's office, did we treat
you nice?-
A I think so.
MR. CHATHAM: We object to that, Your Honor. He is
leading the witness and telling him what to say.
THE COURT: The objection will be sustained. I will let
you ask him how he was treated, but let him state it, him-
self.
Q Well, how were you treated over there, Mose?
A I was treated all right.
Q Were you treated just about like the State's attorney
treated you when he talked to you?
A That ' s right .
Q Did anybody threaten you over there?
A They did not .
0 And were you told there in that office that all we
wanted to know there was just what you knew about it?
A That’s right.
MR. SMITH: If the Court please, we will admit - - we
know these five gentlemen here, and we will admit of our
knowledge that Mose was not mistreated and that he wasn't
brow-beaten, and we will admit that all that is true. we
admit that. ^Je know they wouldn’t do a thing like that.
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THE COURT: All right, I think that is enough.
Q Mose, on this Wednesday night that the incident
happened in Money, where were you?
A At church.
MR. SMITH: We object to anything that happened on
Wednesday night, if the Court please. That has nothing to
do with whatever is involved in this lawsuit .
THE COURT: I think it calls for a conclusion and
would be hearsay evidence. And I think it is objection-
able there unless it is further qualified.
Q Now, on the Wednesday night before this incident,
on the Wednesday night down there at Money - - -
MR. SMITH: If the Court please, we object to anything
that happened on Wednesday night .
THE COURT: I will let Mr. Carlton ask the question
before I rule on any question or on any objection to a
question .
Q On the Wednesday night preceding the night that
Emmett Till disappeared from your home, where were you?
MR. SMITH: We object to that, Your Honor.
THE COURT: The objection is overruled.
Q Where were you, Mose, on the Wednesday night before
Emmett Till disappeared from your home?
A At the church .
55
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Q And who was at church with you?
A Oh, there was a good many people there. I can't
recall .
Q I mean, who was with you from your family group in
your house?
A My wife.
Q Were the boys with you?
A No, Sir.
MR. SMITH: It the Court please, we object to all
} questions that have to do with anything that happened
prior to the night that Emmett Till disappeared. That has
nothing to do with the case at all.
THE COURT: The objection will be overruled. He can
state that. But the witness is not going to be permitted
to state something that he doesn’t know of his own know-
ledge.
Q Were your boys at church with you that night?
A They was not.
Q Was Emmett Till at church with you that night?
A No, Sir.
Q Do you know where they were?
THE COURT: Just of his own knowledge now, not by
hea.rsay .
THE WITNESS:
I sure don't.
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A My wife.
Q Where were the boys? Where were your boys?
A They stayed at home.
Q The five of them stayed there at home? That is,
your three boys and Wheeler Parker and Curtis Jones?
A That’s right.
0 Did you go back to your house that night after you
bought the gasoline?
A I don't think so.
; Q When did you next come back to your house after you
left there that night to get some gasoline?
A I reckon it was about eight o'clock Sunday, some-
thing like that.
0 Did you leave any adult, any grown person, there with
your boys during that time you were gone?
A I sure didn't.
Q About what time did you leave to go to the store
after the gasoline?
A I reckon it was about forty minutes after it happened,
I guess, as near as I can remember.
Q And you say it happened about two o'clock, is that
right ?
A Something like that.
Q Then that would make it about a quarter to three
S3
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when you left your home to get some gasoline?
A Maybe something like that.
Q And you say you left there at that time and didn’t
come back there to your house until about eight o’clock Sun-
day morning?
A I guess it was about that.
Q And you left the boys there - - you left them there
for about five hours by themselves, is that right?
A I guess something like that. I don’t know exactly.
} I didn't keep time.
Q Tell me, Mose, if Emmett Till had not disappeared,
would you have identified the body in the boat as Emmett
Till?
A What do you mean? Do you mean the same ident if i cat ion
I had before?
Q If Emmett Till had not been missing, would you have
thought that was Emmett Till ’ s body in that boat?
A With the evidence I had on him?
Q Yes .
A Yes, Sir.
Q And because he had this ring on his finger, I take
it, and because your boys told you that was Emmett's ring,
is that right?
A That 1 s right .
■:02s (Rev 10-6-D3)
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Q But you had never seen the ring before?
A That's right.
Q And all you know about the ring is what your boys
told you, is that right?
A That's right.
Q Was this a dark night, Mose. that these men came to
your house?
A That's right.
Q And there was never any light in that house that
I night except from just one flashlight, is that right?
A ' That ' s right .
Q And it was so dark that you couldn't even see the
car out in your front yard, is that right?
MR. CHATHAM: Your Honor, I think that is about the
third time he has gone over that. We will be here all week
if he keeps up that type of questioning.
THE COURT: I will ask you to please limit your question-
ing and not repeat questions, if possible to do so. But we
will let him ask that question.
Q My question was, Mose, - - it was so dark that night
that you couldn't even see a car in your front yard, is that
right?
1 A I couldn' t make out what it was, what kind of a car
6
it was.
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Q And you don’t know whether it was a Ford or a
Chevrolet, is that right?
A That ’ s right .
Q And you don’t know whether it was a truck or whether
it was just a car, is that right?
A That's right.
Q All you know is that some vehicle was out in front
of your house and that it drove off towards Money after
these men went out of your house, is that right?
f' t A I saw something dark out there, but I couldn’t make
out what it was.
Q And you don’t know whether it was a car or a truck,
do you?
A Well, when it passed the trees, I saw something dark.
But I couldn't make out just what it was, what kind it was.
Q Was there more than one car there?
A I don't know if there was more than one. I just seen
one car.
Q which way was the car facing?
A Towards Money.
Q Could you see that it was facing towards Money?
A Yes, Sir. They didn't ever have to turn around at
1 all. They just drove right off with it .
Q Could you see that it was facing towards Money?
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A That ' s right .
Q Do you mean to say that you could see it was facing
towards Money, but you couldn't tell whether it was a car
or a truck out there?
A That's right. I saw it when it passed the trees,,
when it was going towards Money. I could see it then easy.
0 Then what kind of a car was it if you could see it
so easy?
MR. SMITH: If the Court please, he has already testified
to chat.
THE COURT: I think that question has been covered.
MR. CARLTON: That is all.
MR. CHATHAM: I think that be all we have with this
witness.
(WITNESS EXCUSED.)
* it to to t Mfr
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(At the request of the Prosecution, the Court took a
recess from 10:25 A.M. until 10:50 A.M. , this date, at
which time the proceedings were resumed.)
MR. BRELAND: If the Court please, the Clerk of this
Court has just handed Defense Counsel a list of additional
witnesses which the Clerk states he has subpoenaed both
for the State and defense. We now move the Court that the
defendants’ counsel have the opportunity of examining these
witnesses in the witness room before they are offered as
witnesses by the State,
The names of these witnesses are as follows:
Amandy Bradley, Walter Billingsley, Ed Reed, Willie Reed,
Frank Young and C. A. Strickland.
THE COURT: Have subpoenas been issued for them for
the defendants?
MR . BRELAND : They have , Your Honor .
THE COURT: Then you will have an opportunity to examine
them before they are put on the witness stand.
MR. SMITH: If they have been subpoenaed for the defense
also, then we have no objection to them talking to the wit-
nesses. But I will make this further statement, that none
of these witnesses will be offered until after the noon re-
cess, unless some change in our plans comes up which we
¥
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cannot foresee.
THE COURT: If they have been subpoenaed by the
defense, then they will have an opportunity to talk to
them before they are put on the stand.
A witness introduced for and on behalf of the State, being
first duly sworn, upon his oath testified as follows:
Q Your name is Chester A. Miller?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Where do you live, Chester?
A I live in Greenwood.
Q Greenwood, Mississippi?
A Yes, Sir.
0 What is your occupation?
A I am an undertaker.
0 How long have you been in the business of an under-
CHESTER A. MILLER,
DIRECT EXAMINATION
BY MR. SMITH:
taker?
A Sixteen years .
Q Do you own your own establishment or not?
A No , sir.
Q You do not?
¥
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A No , Sir.
0 You just work there as an undertaker, is that it?
A I am there as Manager*
Q You are manager of it?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Chester, have you been continuously employed in that
occupation for sixteen years, for the sixteen years that you
have been there?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Now, on or about the 31st day of August, 1955, were
you called upon to come to Tallahatchie County to pick up a
body?
A
Q
your funeral
A
Q
A
Q
A
0
A
Q
A
Yes, Sir.
Who came with you on that occasion? Who came from
home up here with you?
One of my helpers.
One of your nephews?
No - - one of my helpers.
Where did you go when you came up here?
I went beyond Philipp, back in there on the river.
You went down to the river?
Yes, Sir.
Who called you and requested you to come up there?
Mr. Cothran.
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Q Who is Mr. Cothran?
A He is a deputy sheriff of LeFlore County.
Q When you got up there, what did you do?
A When we got there, they ordered us to turn the body
over .
Q Well, when you got there, did you see a body?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Was it living or dead?
A It was a dead body.
Q where was it when you got there?
1
A It was lying in a boat.
Q And where was the boat relative to being up on the
bank or in the stream?
A The boat was up on the bank.
Q Was the body laying face down or face up when you
first got there?
A Face down.
Q Then what did you do relative to the body at that
time, you and your helper?
A Well, we got ready to move the body.
Q How did you move it? What did you do?
A We just turned it over. We first turned it over.
0 Was that while it was still in the boat?
A Yes, Sir.
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Q All right - - then what did you do? What did you do
with the body then?
A Well, we - * someone - - some of the law officers
asked us to go and move that ring off his hand. After we
turned it over, then we discovered this ring on one of his
fingers .
0 What kind of a ring was that?
A It was kind of silver. It was a big ring up in here
(indicating with his hand), but it was kind of small under-
. j neath .
Q Would you recognize that ring if you saw it again?
A Yes, Sir.
Q I hand you here a ring that has marked on it, en-
graved on the front of it, "May 25, 1943", and with the
Large initials, "L.T." . I will ask you if that is the
ring you removed off the finger of that dead body?
A Yes, Sir.
0 You can positively identify that as the same ring?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Now then, Chester, who took the ring off?
A My helper, because he had the gloves on, and when we
got the call, we rushed off and only had one pair of gloves
f ! with us. And when one of the law officers said, "Take the
ring off that finger", well, he had the gloves on, and then
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(
I said to him, "Take it off." And then he took it off
and handed it to me.
Q Did you or did you not see the ring taken off of the
finger of that hand?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And when the ring was taken off, what did you do
with it?
A Well, he gave it to me. I was standing right there
by his side when he took it off.
Q And what did you do with it?
A I laid it over on the floorboard of the ambulance,
on the left-hand side there.
Q That was your ambulance that you took up there for
the body?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And afterwards what did you do with the ring?
A Well, after we got the body turned over, then we
decided to load it, and then he took the ring off, and I
put it away there where I told you, on the floorboard of
the ambulance .
And then we decided to get ready to load the body
and move it away. And then we went and got the casket - -
or rather it was kind of like a regular shipping case, you
might call it. You see, the body was swollen so, and we
68
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had this casket, and box there, and we took the shipping
case, which is really a metal article, you know. It was
there on top of the regular casket case.
And then we taken it out and put it aside, and
then we taken the lid off the casket box, the outer box,
you know, and then we taken this casket, and we set it
there by the side of the body.
And then 1 and my helper, we lifted the body and
taken the body out and laid it there in the casket. And
} then we closed the casket as best we could, and then we put
the casket in this outer box, and we took the box, the
entire box, and we pushed it up in the ambulance.
Q Now, go back to the time the body was still in the
boat - - was there any other thing in the boat there with
the body?
A Yes, Sir.
Q What was it?
A Well, there was a big wheel there.
' Q A big wheel?
A A wheel and a strand of barbed wire.
Q Was that barbed wire attached to the big wheel? Was
it wrapped around it or attached to it in any way?
‘ A' I 3 use don't remember whether it was attached to the
wheel or not.
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Q Was it attached to the body?
A Yes , Sir .
Q The barbed wire was?
A Yes, Sir.
0 And the barbed wire - - how was it attached to the
body?
A It was right around the neck.
0 In what manner was it right around the neck? Was
it wrapped around?
A Yes, Sir, it was wrapped around; well wrapped.
Q It was around the neck o£ the body?
A Around the neck. Yes, Sir.
Q Now then, you said you put the ring in the funeral
coach, or the ambulance, this vehicle you took up there
with you, then what happened to that ring after that?
A Well, we pretty much got everything taken care of,
and then I went up there - - well, I went up to some colored
men who was standing there, and I asked if this boy had any
relatives that they knowed about, and then someone pointed
to this old man standing there, and someone said, "This old
man is his Uncle or some relation."
And then I went up and I asked him, "Will you iden-
tify the body as the boy who was taken from the house - -
“» 7
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MR. BRELAND: We object to that. Your Honor.
THE COURT: The objection will be sustained. You can't
state anything that would be hearsay. And I will ask you.
gentlemen on the jury to disregard that startement .
Q Did anyone present there at the scene identify the
body as any particular person?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And who did they. identify it as being?
THE COURT: That is, if you know.
. MR. BRELAND: We object, Your Honor. That calls for a
conclusion .
THE COURT: The objection is overruled.
0 Who did they identify that body as being, if you know?
A The body of Emmett Till .
MR. BRELAND: We object. Your Honor, because that was
a statement made there .
THE COURT: The objection is overrruled.
Q Did you later find out who the person wa3 who iden-
tified the body that you testified to?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And who was that?
A Hose Wright .
» Q Have you seen Uncle Mose since then?
A Yes, Sir, I have seen him since then.
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j®SV
Q
And
you know that
was Mose Wright?
Wk"
A
Yes ,
. Sir,
I
know
him wel 1 .
m
Q
Now
then.
I
will
ask you, in your
undertaker for sixteen years, have you seen a number of
dead bodies in that time?
MR. BRELAND: I object to that leading form of the
question ,
THE COURT- Objection overruled.
0 Have you or not seen lots of dead bodies during the
time you have been in your profession?
A Yes, Sir.
0 In your opinion, was the body that was there in the
boat that you took out of the boat and put in your ambulance,
was it possible for someone who had known the person well
in their lifetime to have identified that body?
A Yes, Sir.
MR. BRELAND: X object to that, Your Honor. That
definitely calls for a conclusion.
THE COURT: The objection is sustained. And the jury
will disregard that answer.
0 Now, Chester, when you got the body up, you testified
you got the body up and then put it in a casket, and put it
in a box, and then you put it in your ambulance - - then
what did you do with that body thereafter?
72
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)
(
A I taken it to mv place, to the funeral home.
Q And where was that?
A Greenwood .
Q What instructions were you given relative to what
to do with the body? Now don’t tell what anybody said,
but just what instructions you may have received as to what
to do with it after you got it.
A Well, we were instructed to unload it because there
had to be some more investigation made of it.
0 Did anyone take any pictures of that body while it
was down there?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And who tookthem?
A Mr. Strickland.
Q And who is Mr. Strickland?
A He is one of the police officers there in Greenwood.
Q and that was while the body was down there in your
place?
A
Q
do with the
A
0
A
Yes, Sir.
What instructions were you later given as to what to
body?
To take it to burial.
Where?
We had planned to take it to Money.
7
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Q Now, co go back, how long was it after the body
was taken from the river chat Mr. Strickland made those
pictures , Chester?
A About two hours .
0 And I believe X understood the answer to your
question was that you were instructed to prepare the body
for burial at Money, Mississippi, is that right?
A Yes, Sir.
0 Did you carry out those instructions?
A Yes, Sir. I delivered the body to the cemetary at
Money .
Q And when you got there with the body, what happened?
A When I got there, Mose wasn't there,, but he left
word
MR. BRELAND: We object to what he was told or what word
had been left. Your Honor.
THE COURT: Don't tell what you heard. Just state what
you know .
THE WITNESS: Yes, Sir.
Q Did you bury the body there or not?
A No, Sir .
Q What did you do with it?
A X taken it back to my funeral home at Greenwood.
Q And who did you later deliver it to?
74
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ronunuaiion t.f F 0-302 of TRANSCRI PT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sept 1955 . On . Page 78
A To the undertaker there at Tutwiler.
MR. BRELAND: WE object to that, if Your Honor please,
unless he did it himself.
0 What is the man's name at Tutwiler to whom the body
was del ivered?
A I don't remember.
0 Now then, Chester, I asked you about the ring awhile
ago, and we got up to the place where you laid it in the
ambulance, or the funeral coach - - what did you do with
\ that ring thereafter?
A I gave it to Mose Wright .
Q You gave the ring to Mose Wright?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And you have never had that ring since?
A No Sir.
MR. SMITH-. Take the witness.
CROSS EXAMINATION
BY MR. CARLTON:
Q Chester, this body that you had there, did you carry
it to Tutwiler, yourself?
A No, Sir.
; MR. BRELAND: Now, we move the Court to exclude the
statement made by the witness that he took it to Tutwiler.
75
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3SZ ...
?;•;■ THE COURT: The witness says it was delivered to
m
f/. Tutwiler, and he is the manager of the funeral home. He
L should know where he sent the body.
_ . Page . 7 9
MR. BRELAND: Well, he can still state just what he did.
MR. CHATHAM: One other question, Your Honor, if you
will permit it, I think it might save some time.
THE COURT: All right. Sir, I will permit it.
f
REDIRECT EXAMINATION
BY MR. SMITH :
Q When that body was laying there in the boat at the
time you got there, Chester, how was the body clothed, if
it was clothed?
A It wasn't clothed.
Q Dit it have anything on it whatsoever except that
piece of barbed wire?
A No, Sir.
Q I believe you stated that you are the manager of the
funeral home down there, is that right?
A Yes, Sir.
0 Will you state whether or not the body was delivered
to Tutwiler at your directions?
MR. BRELAND: If the Court please, we object unless he
knows .
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THE COURT-. The objection will be overruled.
0 Was it delivered to Tutwiler at your directions?
A Yes, Sir.
MR. BRELAND: If the Court please, we move to exclude
that witness' statement as being a mere conclusion on his
part, as he did not go with the body to Tutwiler.
THE COURT: The objection is overrruled.
Q Did you direct anyone in your establishment there to
deliver the body that you got out of the river to Tutwiler?
'■ A No , S i r .
Q What?
A No, Sir.
0 Did you understand my question, Chester? I said,
did you give directions from someone or to someone in your
establishment to deliver the body which you found in the
river, or which you got from the river, to Tutwiler?
MR. BRELAND: If the Court please, we object to that
as being a leading question.
THE COURT: I think it would be better if the witness
were to state the directions that were given, if any, and
if so, what they were .
Q The body that was down there at your funeral home ,
what directions did you give and to whom did you give them
to deliver the body to Tutwiler?
44A-JN-30112, 62D- JN-30045 -FD3G2
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MR. BRELAND; We object, Your Honor. That is leading.
THE COURT; The objection is overruled. Let's proceed.
THE WITNESS: Well, I don't remember instructing anyone
the way to go from Greenwood to Tutwiler.
0 Who did you instruct to take the body up there to
Tutwiler?
MR. BRELAND: We object. Your Honor. That is still
leading the witness.
THE COURT; The objection is overruled.
( ) THE WITNESS: Crosby Smith.
Q Will you state whether or not the body which left
your funeral home with Smith was the body that you took
from the river down there?
with any body.
THE WITNESS; Well, I went to Tutwiler the next morning
to see if the body was going to be shipped, and it had a bill
A Will you say that again, please. Sir?
Q Will you state whether or not the body which Smith
left there' to take to Tutwiler was the same body that you
picked up down there at the River?
A Yes, Sir.
MR. BPJSLAND: We object to that, Your Honor.
THE COURT; The objection is overruled.
MR. BRELAND: But he has not said that Smith left there
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nunuaiion of FD-J02 or TRANSCR I PT - EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sept 1955 .On 82
or a tag with the name "Emmett Till" on the casket. And
I helped load it on the coach in the train.
MR. BRELAND. We object to that, if your Honor please.
The witness was not asked about that at all.
THE COURT: The objection is sustained. You gentlemen
will please disregard that statement made by the witness.
Q Will you describe the body generally that you picked
up down there on the river out of the boat? Would you tell
the court and jury generally just what kind of body it was?
; A Yes, Sir.
f
MR. CARLTON: If the Court please, we object to this.
This is not proper cross examination.
THE COURT: The objection is overruled. I believe they
* asked permission to ask additional questions.
MR. WHITTEN: But, if the Court please, it was just one
question that they wanted to ask.
THE COURT: The objection is overruled.
Q Will you give the jury a description of that body as
to size, age, weight and so forth?
A Well, it looked to be about five foot four or five
inches in height: weight between one hundred and fifty or
sixty pounds. And it looked to be that of a colored person.
Q Could you tell whether or not it was the body of a
young person, or middle age or an old person?
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A yes. Sir. Well, the flesh in the palm of the hand,
well, it looked like it was the body of a young person. And
from certain parts of the body - - well, in my experience
in handling those kind of bodies, by certain parts of the
body it looked like a youth more so than a grown person or
an older person.
MR. SMITH: That is all.
MR. BRELAND: We will excuse the witness at this time.
Your Honor .
(WITNESS EXCUSED)
******
C. A. STRICKLAND,
A witness introduced for and on behalf of the state, being
first duly sworn, upon his oath testified as follows:
DIRECT EXAMINATION
By MR. SMITH:
Q Will you state your name, please, Sir?
A C. A. Strickland .
Q where do you live, Mr. Strickland?
A Greenwood.
Q what is your occupation?
A Identification Officer for the Collision Department.
30
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Q Of Greenwood?
A Yes, Sir.
Q How long have you been serving in that capacity?
A Most of twelve years.
Q Now, as an identification officer for the Police
Department of Greenwood, did it fall within your province
to take photographs and so forth?
A Yes.
0 On or about the 31st day of August, 1955, were you
j called upon to take photographs of a dead body and other
articles there in Greenwood?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And where were they?
A The body was at the Century Burial Funeral Home
there in Greenwood.
Q Is that the funeral home operated by Chester A. Miller?
A Yes, Sir.
0 And did you take photographs of a dead body there,
and a fan or wheel , or something of that sort there?
A A fan was there at the same place where the body
was. I taken both pictures but at different times. And I
did photograph the body there.
’ Q And the body was there at the funeral home?
A Yes, Sir.
31
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Q Did anybody point out to you the body that you were
to take pictures of?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And who pointed it out?
w
■f!;
i?£-
m-
A Deputy Sheriff Cothran.
Q And he is a deputy sheriff of LeFlore County, is
r
that right?
A Yes, Sir.
Q I now hand you a photograph and ask you to identify
that and tell the court and jury what that is.
A That is a picture of the body that I photographed
on the 31st of August, at about three p.m. in the after-
noon. It was on a table at the back of the Century Burial
Funeral Home there in Greenwood.
0 Now I will ask you whether or not this photograph
represents the true situation that was there when you
photographed that body?
A It does.
Q And you took it with what kind of photographic
equipment?
A I used a 4 by 5 Crown graphic camera.
Q And is that the kind of camera you use normally in
your work?
A Yes, Sir. I take the pictures, and develop them
03a (Rev 10-6-95)
4 4 A - JN -30112, 62D-JN- 30045 -FD302
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coo. I took the pictures there, and 3 printed the film
and developed it rnyself.
Q And that has been in your possession all the time,
is that right?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Now I hand you another photograph and ask you to
identify that, please.
A This is a photograph of the gin fan that I photo-
graphed on the 1st day of September in the LeFlore County
Sheriff's office. It was in the office of the sheriff.
Q And who directed you to take this photograph?
A Sheriff Cothran - - I mean Deputy Sheriff Cothran.
He was also with me when I made that picture.
Q And you were also the same person who printed and
developed the film of that?
A Yes, Sir.
MR. SMITH: Your Honor, we would like to make these
photographs exhibits to the testimony here.
MR. CARLTON: We object to the writing on the back of
the photograph .
MR. SMITH: We admit that is not competent. We will
obliterate it in some manner.
( : THE COURT: All right. But see that it is done before
the exhibit is shown to the jury.
83
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'*•' ■ THE WITNESS: You see, I take that, information for
my own use so I can positively identify the pictures.
HR. BRELAND: If the Court please we are going to
Stay, bbject to the picture of the gin fan at this time.
THE COURT: All right. The objection will be sustained
as to the gin fan picture. The photograph of the l? 0< 3y will
be admitted providing what is written on the back of the
photograph is marked out or obliterated so that it cannot
be read or identified.
(A photograph is marked as Exhibit 1 to the testimony
jpP"
of C. A. Strii
MR.
K
Is:
photograph of
correct?
F
THE
r
had not been ;
1
MR.
1 • • 1
i
at this time.
« .
MR.
(WITNESS EXCUSED)
* Hr Hr * * Hr
34
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ominuation of FD-302 of TKANSCR I PT - EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sent 1955 , Ou , Page 88
GEORGE SMITH,
A witness introduced for and on behalf of the State, being
first' duly sworn, upon his oath testified as follows:
DIRECT EXAMINATION
BY DISTRICT ATTORNEY CHATHAM:
Q Is this Mr. George Smith?
A Yes, Sir.
MR. BRELAND: Just a preliminary question, if Your
Honor please - - has this witness been in the courtroom
t \ during the trial of the cause?
/
THE WITNESS: No, Sir.
Q Mr. Smith, what official position do you now have
in LeFlore County, Mississippi?
A Sheri f f .
Q How long have you held that position?
A Well, it will be four years this January.
Q Were you sheriff of LeFlore County on August 31st,
1955?
A
Q
along about
occasion to
A
Q
Yes, Sir.
I want you to tell the court and jury whether or not
August 28th or August 31st, 1955, you had
investigate the death of Emmett Till.
Yes, Sir,
And in your investigations, please tell the jury
85
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, Page 89
whether or not you had a conversation with Mr. Roy Bryant,
one of the defendants in this case?
MR. BRELAND: If the Court please, if he is going to
bring out any admission or any conversation had with the
defendant, then we ask that it be properly qualified, that
the testimony be properly qualified in the absence of
the jury.
THE COURT: Is that what you are leading up to, Mr.
Chatham?
MR. CHATHAM: We are leading up to a statement made to
the witness.
THE COURT; Then the jury will be excused from the room
at this time.
(The jury retired to the jury room, and the proceedings
continued in the absence of the jury.)
Q Mr. Smith, where was Mr. Bryant when you had this
conversation with him?
A In front of his store, sitting in my car, Sunday
afternoon,. August the 28th, at about two o'clock.
Q And where is that store located?
A In Money, Mississippi.
Q Did you offer Mr. Bryant any hope of reward or
immunity if he made a statement to you concerning the
death of Emmett Till?
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A No, Sir.
Q Did you threaten him in any way in order to intim-
idate him to make a statement?
A No, Sir.
Q And was the statement that he made to you then and
there voluntarily made?
A Yes, Sir.
MR. CHATHAM-. We think that qualified the statement,
Your Honor.
CROSS EXAMINATION
BY MR. BRELAND i
0 How long have you known Mr. Bryant, Mr. Smith?
A Mr. Breland, I guess he has been in that county for
about two years .
Q And you have known him since that time?
A Yes, Sir - - not too well, but I know who Roy was.
Q Now, your deputy, Mr. Cothran, ran for Sheriff of
LeFlore County in this past election, did he not?
A Yes, Sir.
0 And you supported him in chat, did you not?
A No, Sir.
MR. CHATHAM: We object to that, if Your Honor please.
That has no bearing on this whatsoever.
8
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*T fd- 502 of TRANSCR.IP.Xj:J^MMETTL._XI_L»-L. TRIAL Sept 1955 . On , Pag* 9
THE COURT: I will reserve my opinion on that.
Q Did you support your deputy for Sheriff down there
in LePlore County?
A Mr. Breland, I had two deputies running out of my
office, and I prefer not to answer that question if I can.
Q And that is for personal reasons?
A Yes, Sir.
THE COURT: I don't see that this would have any bear-
ing on the case unless it can be shown that such an inquiry
is material.
0 Mr. Smith, you, yourself, did run for representative
down there in your county this time, is that right?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And Mr. Bryant supported you in that race, did he
not?
A I don't know, Sir. I didn't ask him to vote for me
or anybody else.
Q But he told you that he supported you, isn't that
true?
A I don’t know.
Q Well, you considered him your friend and he consider-
ed you as his friend, isn't that true?
A Well, 3 have been friends with several of them in
the family; yes, Sir.
FD-302a (Rev. ) 0-6-95 >
44A- JN-30112. 62D-JN- 3004 5- FD302
Comtnuakm of FD-302 of TRANSCRI PT - EMMETT TILL TRIAL, Sept 1955 ,On__ _,Pa 6 c 92
Q
And when you went there that day he was asleep in
his bedroom.
wasn't he?
A
He was asleep, yes. Sir, as I understand.
■ Q
And you asked hrm to come out away from his family.
didn't you?
A
Mr. Cothran did.
Q
And that was so you could talk to him- confidentially?
A
Yes, Sir.
0
And you wanted him away from the members of his
family?
A
Yes, Sir.
Q
And the impression was left by you and Mr. Cothran
that you were going to talk conf identially with him at
that time?
A
Well, I don’t know about the impression.
0
Well, that could have been the impression, could
it not?
A
It could have been.
Q
And he trusted you, did he not, and also Mr. Cothran?
A
I guess so.
Q
And it was on that basis that he made any statement
to you, was it not?
A Well, there was very little statement made, Mr.
Breland .
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i
O I understand - - but what statement was made, that
i
I
I
i
f
was true?
A. Yes, Sir.
Q And you didn't tell him that you actually came up
there for the purpose of arresting him or anything like
that , . did you?
A Well, I didn’t right at that moment.
Q I mean before any statement was made to you?
A No ; Sir.
Q In other words, when he was talking to you, he
thought that he was talking to a confidential friend and
in a confidential manner, didn't he?
A Well, I couldn't answer that question.
MR. BRELAND: We submit. Your Honor, that the witness
should not be permitted to testify on the grounds that any
statement made to the witness was made as a matter of con-
fidence, and any statement that was made, whatever it was,
would not be competent in this case .
And we object further. Your Honor, because the .
corpus delicti has not been established . There has been
no testimony here that this body that was taken from the
river was the body of Emmett Till, And any admission,
if the corpus delicti has not been established , then such
admission or admissions that might have been made, as far
FL>*3t£aiKei 10-6-95)
i
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i
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\ ConiiimatwHi of l : D-3l)2 of TRAM SCRIPT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sept 1555 .On . I'ag* 94
i
i
! as any admission of guilt is concerned, that is certainly
I not competent in this case.
|
THE COURT: Any conversation as to guilt or any ad-
mission of guilt in the crime of murder cannot be shown
- at this time because the corpus delicti has not been
; shown.
i
! MR. BRELAND: And further. Your Honor, that cannot be
i
i
i considered as res gestae at this time, and therefore, such
i
\ an admission is not competent.
! • THE COURT: Suppose we see what the witness is going
to testify to before I rule on this.
MR. BRELAND; A,nd we would like for that to be traced
before the jury comes in and hears it.
THE COURT: Yes. The corpus delicti, has not been
proven as yet.
REDIRECT EXAMINATION
BY DISTRICT ATTORNEY CHATHAM;
0 Mr. Smith, on that particular day that you say you
talked to Mr. Bryant, what statement did he make to you con-
cerning the disappearance of Emmett Till?
A He said he went down there and went to his house
and got him out and then brought him up to the store. And
he said he wasn't the right one so then he turned him loose.
91
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il
Q And co whose house did he say he went to get him?
A He said he went down to Mose Wright's.
Q Did he make any further statement to you as to where
he went after he released Emmett. Till?
A He said he went somewhere to play cards. I don't
remember where just now.
Q Did he say how long he had been up thac night?
A Well, he said he played cards the rest of the night,
over at some of the family’s house.
\ Q And who did he say went down to Mose ' s house with
him?
A He didn't say.
Q .And did you later have an opportunity to talk to
Mr . Mil am?
A I didn't. No, Sir.
THE COURT: Mr. Chatham, the court is of the opinion
that before the witness can testify to these things, the
corpus delicti should be proven. There has been no proof
of any criminal agency shown here as far as a corpus
delicti is concerned.
These gentlemen are charged with the crime of
murder. And before this evidence can be received, I think
a corpus delicti should be proven. But as yet, there has
been no corpus delicti in Chis case.
92
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miiimaiion nf FU-302 of TRANSCR I PT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sent 1955 ,On , I’age 96
MR . CHATHAM ; will the cou rt permi t me to conti nue
along that line?
THE COURT: Yes, Sir; go right ahead.
0 Mr. Smith, did you have an opportunity to see the
body that was taken from the Tallahatchie River on August
31st by Chester A. Miller at the point between Philipp and
Masel anytime after it got into Miller's possession?
A I did not .
Q When did you see that body?
v A I did not see the body.
0 You did not see the body?
A No, Sir.
MR. SMITH: In view of the Court's ruling, we will
excuse Mr. Smith at the present time and call Chester
Miller back.
{WITNESS EXCUSED)
it * -k * * *
93
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44A-JN-301 12 , 62D-JN- 30045 -FD302
MMMiorFD.302 of TRAM SCRIPT -EMMETT TILL TRIAL. Sent 1955 .On N* — 21
(The jury returned to the ■ courtroom, and the pro-
ceedings continued with the }ury present.)
CHESTER A. MILLER
Recalled as a witness for and on behalf of the State,
having been duly sworn, upon his oath testified as
follows :
REDIRECT EXAMINATION
BY MR. SMITH:
\ ■ Q Now you are Chester A. Miller, is that right?
i
A Yes, Sir.
Q And you are the same Chester A. Miller who testified
here awhile ago?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And you are an undertaker at Greenwood?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Now, we. asked you about the body of a person taken
out of the Tallahatchie River on August 31st, 1955, and you
testified to that. Did you examine that body while it was
in your possession or while you observed it?
A Yes, Sir.
0 Did you make a close or casual examination of it?
' A I would say casual.
Q Did you notice anything unusual about the body
relative to wounds or anything of that nature?
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• 1 ** 8 * 98
A Yes, Sir.
Q Where were those wounds?
A It seemed like a bullet wound - - -
MR. BRELAND: We object. Your Honor.
THE COURT: The objection is sustained.
Q Chester, just describe the situation. Describe
what you saw,
A Well, the whole crown of his head, from here above
{indicating with his hand) was just crushed in.
Q Where there any other wounds about the body?
A No, Sir.
Q Were there any other wounds on the head? Any other
indications of a wound on the head?
A There was no other wound except it looked like a
pistol wound - - -
MR. BRELAND: We object. Your Honor.
THE COURT: The objection is sustained. The witness
should not state his own conclusion. Just state what you
know .
Q Just describe what any wound about the head looked
like. Was it a round hole, or a square hole or what?
MR. CARLTON: We object to counsel testifying, Your
Honor.
THE COURT: The objection is overruled.
P
P
95
P
P
P
P
P
P
R
R
R
:
ijjL-3QZA {Rev. 10-^95)
S' ;
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tf-. ■
THE WITNESS: The crown of his head was just crushed
out and in, you know, and a piece of his skull just fell
out there in the boat, maybe three inches long or maybe
two and a half inches wide, something like that.
Q Now don’t tell what your conclusion is, but just
state what the wound was there about his head.,
A Well, that is about all the wound I know of.
Q 1 believe it was objected to your testifying about
something over his ear. What did that look like?
j A It looked like a bullet hole.
MR. BRELAND: We object, Your Honor.
THE COURT: The objection is sustained.
Q Chester, just describe it. Don’t tell your con-
clusion as to what caused it. Just state what it looked
like. What did you see there?
A I saw a hole in the skull.
Q ‘ And how big a hole was it?
A Oh, about - - - maybe half an inch square, something
like that.
0 And where was that hole? Will you point on your
head to where it was?
A It was somewhere around there, above the ear
(indicating with his hand).
Q And that is about three-quarters of an inch above
FD-jQ2i (Kuv I0-6-9S)
44 A- JN- 301 12 , 62D-JN- 30045- FD302
Catiiuwattoii of FD-302 of TRANSCRI PT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL SePt 1955 ,On .Page __
your right ear, is that right?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Was there any hole or similar thing over on the
other side of his head?
A Well, it was crushed on the other side. You
couldn't tell too much it was crushed so. And it was
all cut up and gashed across the top there.
Q Will you state whether or not the wounds which
you have described here were sufficient to cause his
t death?
MR. BRELAND-. We object to that. Your Honor. He is no
expert to that. And the jury knows as much as he does
about that. I think that is within the province of the
jury.
THE COURT.- I am going to let the witness answer the
question .
0 Will you state whether or not the wounds which you
have described here were sufficient to cause his death?
A Yes, Sir.
Q I believe 3 asked you this, but I am not sure, .you
testified that there was some barbed wire in the boat, but
did I ask you whether or not the barbed wire was on the
' person or the deceased?
A Yes, Sir, you asked me.
100
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||^_of>D-J 02 of TRANSCRIPT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL Sept 1955 , On .
Q Was it?
A Yes , Sir .
Q Where was it?
A Around the neck.
Taut 101
ft
K'l -
A '
•V
ft
*\ "
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i
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I
t .
RE -CROSS EXAMINATION
BY MR. BRELAND:
Q Chester Miller?
A Yes, Sir.
Q What you saw about that body was a decomposed
condition. You couldn't tell what caused that condition,
could you?
A Well, Yes, Sir, It was blown from some kind of
instrument .
Q It was caused from some outside agency? Would you
say that? That is all, you can say, is it?
A what do you mean, by outside agency?
Q Well, you said a blow or something, isn’t that right?
A It was a bruise caused by some instrument, I would
say .
Q Then you would say that there was a bruise or some-
thing there?
A Well, some of the wounds I noticed were caused from
some instrument of some kind and some I saw might be some-
thing like from a gun.
98
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MR. BRELAND: The Court has already ruled on that,
and we move that it be excluded.
THE COURT: The ' conclusion of the witness will be dis-
regarded by the jury,
Q Now, what you saw about the condition of that man as
to his head, you couldn’t tell whether it was caused before
or after his death, could you?
A No, Sir.
Q And you couldn't tell whether it was caused in a
car accident or otherwise, could you? You couldn’t tell
that to be truthful about it, could you? You couldn't
tell could you?
A No, Sir.
MR. BRELAND: That is all. Take the witness.
MR. SMITH: That is all.
(WITNESS EXCUSED.)
(At this point in the proceedings, 11:45 a.m., the Court
took a recess until 2:45 p.m., this date, at which time the
proceedings were resumed . )
* * * * *
•ir
99
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ROBERT HODGES,
A witness introduced for an on behalf of the State,
being first duly sworn, upon his oath testified as follows:
DIRECT EXAMINATION
BY MR. SMITH:
Q What is your name, please?
A Robert Hodges.
Q Where do you live, Robert?
A Down in Philipp, Mississippi.
Q And what, county is that you live in?
A Tallahatchie.
Q How old are you, Robert?
A Seventeen.
Q Are you a fisherman?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And you live right out on the river, I believe.
A Yes, Sir.
0 Now, Robert, on the last day of August of this year
of 1955, on the 31st day of August, did you go fishing that
morning?
A Yes, Sir.
0 And I believe you said that you had set out some
lines and went out to see them, is that right?
103
A Yes, Sir.
0 Robert, did anything unusual happen while you were 100
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44A-JN-.30112, 62D- JN- 3 004 5 - FD302
Coniinujiion of FD-302 of TRAUSCRI PT- EMMETT TILL TRIAL Seot 1955 . On , tag* 104
out there setting out the 1 ines?
A Yes, Sir. I seen two knees and feet.
Q Just describe to the jury and court what you "saw
there.
A Well, I saw right along here, up and down, both of
them (indicating with his hands) .
Q And that would be from the top part of the legs and
knees down, is that right?
A Yes, Sir.
, Q And the front part of the feet, is that right?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Robert, where did you find that?
A well, it was about one mile from my house.
Q Which side of the river was it on?
A On the left side going down the river.
Q Would that be in LeFlore County or Tallahatchie
County? Was that on the LeFlore County side or Tallahatchie
side?
A Tallahatchie.
Q What was the reason for it being there? Was it hung
up or floating?
A Yes, it was hung up there on a snag in the bottom
of the river.
0 When you saw those two feet and legs sticking up
10
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there, what did you do then, Robert?
A well, I had a few more set out down below there,
and then I went on and run them, and then I came down and
told my Father about it . And then my Father - - -
MR. SMITH: You can't tell what you told your Father.
THE COURT: Don't tell any conversation you might have
had with anyone.
Q Then after you had run your lines, what did you do?
A I reported it to my Father.
q Do you know of your own knowledge what he did about
it? . -
A Well, he, told the landlord that we live with, and
then he reported it - - -
0 Who is your landlord?
A B. L. Mims.
Q- And what time of the morning was that?
A It was between six thirty and seven o'clock.
Q In the morning?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Did anybody do anything about that body down there
during the rest of the day?
A Mo, Sir, - - didn’t nobody go down there.
105
Q Did somebody go down there later in the day?
A Three men was the only ones that went down there
102
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and there was the Deputy Sheriff.
Q Did they go down there with Mr. Mims or by them-
selves or how?
A No , Sir; in B . L . Mims' boa t .
Q Is that B. L. Mims?
A Yes, Sir.
Q who were those men?
A Well, the Deputy Sheriff.
Q Mr. Melton?
A Yes, he was one of them; and there was Charlie Fred
Mims and my Father.
Q Do you know whether that was in the Sumner Court
District of Tallahatchie county?
A Yes, Sir, in the Sumner court District.
Q That is where the body was found?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Robert, when youall went back down there, ,1 believe
you took two boats, did you not?
A Yes, Sir.
Q when you got back down there, was the body there in
the same place?
A Yes, Sir, in the same place. It hadn't been moved
a bit .
Q And was it still in the same position?
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A Yes.
0 When you got down there, tell the court and jury
what you all did .
A Well, tne first thing we done, one boy went down
there - - - the first thing we done - - the first boy - -
let me see now - - when the first boy went down - - Bo
Mims and Mr. Melton, I think that was the deputy's name,
and Fred Mims ~ - well, they came back to the house and got
me and my Daddy, and we went down there at first.
Q And then what happened?
A Well, they brought the rope back there, and then me
and this other boy was in a boat, and Mr. Melton was there.
and they had the rope around the boy’s legs and then they
hung it on there, and they had it on this other boat, and
then they carried it down the river and took it out on the
other side there.
Q How did you hang it there?
A Well, they pulled up the river a little ways and
got in unhung, so that they could move it, and then they
got this rope around the legs, and then we carried it on up
the river, and then we just come on across and pulled it
over, on the bank in the boat.
Q When you pulled it back up the river, did the body
float?
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A Yes, Sir, I think so.
Q When you pulled it out on the bank, what if anything,
was attached to the body?
An iron weight -
What?
A weight .
What kind of a weight was it?
A gin fan.
Robert, how was that weight or fan, as you say,
the body?
With a piece of barbed wire.
How was the barbed wire attached to the body?
It was wrapped around his neck, as best I can re-
Would you remember that fan or weight if you saw it
Yes, Sir, I believe I would.
Will you come around and take a look at this (in-
dictating an object on the floor)?
A It looks like it.
0 Does that look like it?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And does that look like the barbed wire that was
attached to it?
A
0
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Q
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Q
i attached to
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member ,
• Q
again?
A
Q
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A Yes, Sir. It locks like it except the mud has
been cleaned off it.
Q And you say when you pulled it out on the bank that
the barbed wire was wrapped around the neck of this body
and that it was attached to the fan, is that right?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And that was serving as a weight for the body, is
that correct?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Did you have a chance to observe the body there
relative to any blows or any wounds of any kind?
A It was beaten pretty bad in the back.
Q On the back?
A Yes, Sir, and hips.
0 What about the head?
A It was also gashed in on the side.
Q What was done with the body then after you drug it
out on the bank with that weight?
A Well, this - - -
MR. BRELAND: Your Honor, we want to object to the
statement of the witness that the body was beaten on the
back.
THE COURT: You can tell what the condition of the
body was, but not your conclusions as to what caused that.
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You can state to the jury what the condition of that
body was with reference to any marks, wounds, or anything
else that you could actually see. But you can’t draw
your own conclusion as to what might have caused that.
THE WITNESS: No, Sir, I can’t.
THE COllRT : And you gentlemen {to the jury) will, of
course, disregard that statement made by the witness.
Q What did the marks on his back look like?
A Well, it looked to me like it was blood-shot.
>■_ Q Robert, what was done with the body after you all
pulled it out on the bank with that weight attached to it?
A Well, they unconnected the barbed wire from the
weight. . I believe that was the first thing. And then they
put the body in the boat, and they got the weight and set
it in the back end of the boat,
Q And where was the boat taken, if anywhere?
A We carried it up to the landing there.
Q Is that the landing you normally used there?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And when you got back up there, what did you do
with the body and with that weight?
A Well , the undertaker came down - - will you repeat
f that? I didn't get that.
Q After you got the body up there in the boat, and
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It was in the boat, what did you do with the body and
this weight up there at the landing?
A Well, they just left it in there. And then after
that the ambulance come, or the coach, or whatever you want
to call it .
0 Did you stay there until the ambulance came?
A Yes, Sir . .
Q Do you know who the undertaker was that was driving
or operating with that ambulance?
A Chester Miller, I believe his name was,
Q You saw him come there, did you?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And you were there when he got the body?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And when the undertaker got there, what did he' do
with the body?
A He put it in a box.
Q And what did he do with the box?
A He set it back in the coach .
Q Now, Robert, did you see anything on this boy’s hands
or fingers?
A There was a ring.
Q What kind of a ring was it?
A A silver ring.
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Q Did you examine that ring? Did you look at it?
A No, Sir. I didn’t get close to it.
Q Would you recognize it if you saw it again?
A I might -
Q There is a ring, Robert, that has engraved on it
"May 25, 1943" and the big initials "L. T." . Do you re-
cognize that as being the ring that was on the finger of
that body?
A It looked like it. I didn’t get close enough to
see the initials. -
Q But that looks like the ring though?
A Yes, Sir.
0 Who took charge of this weight out there, Robert?
A Who was ’in charge of it?
Q Yes, Who took charge there and took it away from
there?
A There was some sheriff - - I forgot who it was - -
from Greenwood. I can't remember his name..
Q Was it Mr. Cothran, if you know?
A It could have been. I don't remember.
MR, SMITH: Take the witness.
MR. BRELAND:' No Questions.
( (WITNESS EXCUSED)
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g B. L. MIMS,
” A witness introduced for and on behalf of the State, being
L-
■ first duly sworn, upon his oath testified as follows;
l' DIRECT EXAMINATION
| BY MR. SMITH;
_ 0 You are Mr. B. L. Mims?
® A That's right.
£ Q And I believe you spell that M-I-M-S, is that
right?
, page
(
A Yes .
Q Where do you live, Mr. Mims?
A About five miles north of Philipp.
Q Is that in Tallahatchie County?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And I believe you live right down there, right at
the river, is that correct?
A That's right.
Q And that is the Tallahatchie River?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Mr. Mims, do you recall the occasion back on August
31st, 1955, when a body was found down there at the river
near your home?
A Yes, Sir.
0 Who notified you about that fact?
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A It was one of these boys on the place there. .1 am
not sure exactly who did notify me about it. But somebody
told me about it.
Q And you then called the officers about it, is that
right?
A Beg pardon?
Q Did you call the officers?
A No, Sir.
Q You didn't call them?
A No, Sir .
0 Mr. Mims, 1 believe someone down there did notify
them, is that correct?
A Yes, Sir; that's right.
0 Did you go down there to the river after you heard
about this?
A Yes,' Sir.
Q When was the first time you saw this body?
A 1 went down the river. I used my outboard motor and
boat, and I went down the river to look for him, and we
found him.
Q who was with you at that time?
A Deputy Sheriff Garland Melton. ■
Q Was there anyone else along?
A Yes, Sir. There was two men behind us in another
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» boat .
® Q Who were they?
| A Well, my brother Fred Mims, and Robert Hodges.
0. Will you just describe what you saw when you got
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there?
A Well, we saw a person - - from his knee on down
and including his feet - - we saw that sticking up above
the water. And we could tell by looking at it that it was
a colored person. That is all we could see, just from the
knee on down, both knees.
Q Why was that body there? Was' it hung up, or
floating or what?
A Yes, Sir, it was hung. It was hung.
Q Then what did you and the others do relative to
that body?
A Well, we went up there and looked at it, and we de-
cided that we was going to have to have a rope in order to
unhang him. And so we sent one of the boats back after a
line and to bring it down so that we could unhang the body.
Q And after you got the line, what did you do?
A Well, we tied it on the feet and then pulled the feet
together. We tied it around the ankles and then pulled it
loose from the bottom.
Q When you pulled it loose, did the body float there
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. in the water?
A Well, I am not sure about that. I wouldn't say It
did float, and I say that because the deputy was there in
the front end of the boat holding on to the line. And I
didn't notice whether there was any slack that was loose
enough for the body to be floating there or not. I didn't
notice that.
Q What did you all do then with the body?
A We towed it downstream to a shallow bank there and
> then we landed there and pulled the body out.
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Q Then was there anything attached to that body?
A Yes, Sir, there was.
Q What was it?
A It was a weight, part of a gin fan.
q Would you recognize that fan. if you saw it again?
A Yes, Sir, I believe I could.
Q Would you come around here and look at this fan here
on the floor?
A Yes, Sir. (The witness observed the object) . I
think that is it.
Q Is that it?
A I believe it is, Yes, Sir.
.( o It looks like it, does ic?
A Yes, Sir.
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Q Now, how was that fan attached to the body?
A It was tied around his neck and then it was around
the fan.
Q It was tied with what?
A A piece of barbed wire.
Q When you all got it out there on the bank, what did
you do then?
A The Deputy Sheriff disconnected the weight from the
body there when we pulled it out.
Q And what did you do with the body and the weight?
A We pulled the body over there in an extra boat that
we had there to tow him back in, and we put the weight there
in the boat also, in the same boat.
Q And then what did you do?
A Then we connected it on behind my boat and towed it
upstream to the landing.
0 And then what was done with the body?
A We pulled the boat out on the bank about fifteen
steps, I would say, from the water. And that is the way
it was when I left. I didn't stay there but a little
while after that.
0 You are familiar with the river and the land and so
forth down there in that section, are you not?
A Yes, Sir.
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Q And I believe you are a landowner down there, is
that right?
A A renter .
Q At the place you found that body, will you state to
the jury and to the court whether it was on the Tallahat-
chie County side or on the LeFlore County side of the
river?
A Well, I am not sure about how the line goes there.
I understand the river is not exactly the way the line is.
\ But I would guess it was in Tallahatchie County.
Q And would that be in the Second Court District of
Tallahatchie County or the Sumner Court District?
A Yes, Sir.
MR. SMITH: Take the witness.
MR. CARLTON: No questions. Your Honor.
(WITNESS EXCUSED)
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GEORGE SMITH,
Recalled as a witness for and on behalf of the State, having
been duly sworn, upon his oath testified as follows:
RE.DIRECT EXAMINATION
BY DISTRICT ATTORNEY CHATHAM:
Q Is that Mr. George Smith?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Mr. Smith, what official position do you hold in
LeFlore County, Mississippi?
A Sheriff.
Q How long have you held that position?
A Four years.
0 As Sheriff of LeFlore County, Mr. Smith, I want you
to tell the court and jury whether or not during the period
between August 28th and August 31st, 1955, you had occas-
ion to investigate the death and disappearance of Emmett
Till?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And during that investigation did you have an oppor
tunity to talk to the defendant, Roy Bryant?
A Yes, Sir.
MR. BRELAND: Now, if the Court please, we are going
to interpose here, the same objection that we did before
the preliminary examination of this witness, for two
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reasons .
And the first reason is that it is not shown here
in the preliminary examination that any statement incrim-
inating this defendant was freely and voluntarily made.
And that has already been decided by the Supreme Court
of Mississippi. And if they are going to ask any additional .
questions to qualify the witness or any statement that he
might have made, then that should be made or done in the
absence of the jury.
THE COURT: Suppose you go ahead and ask your questions,
Mr. Chatham. The objection at this time will be overruled,
Q Mr. Smith, where was Mr. Bryant when he made the
statement to you?
A In my car, sitting there in front of his store, in
Money, Mississippi.
Q And on what day of the month of August was that?
A It was Sunday afternoon, August 28th.
Q Sunday afternoon, August 28th?
A Yes , Sir .
Q Were there any other persons present at the time Mr.
Bryant made the statement to you?
A No, Sir.
Q Now, before making any statement to you at that time,
Mr. Smith, did you threaten or intimidate Mr. Bryant in
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order to get him to make a statement?
t A No, Sir.
| Q Did you offer him any hope of reward or immunity
from prosecution? Did you promise him any reward for making.
| any statement to you?
A I did not .
1 Q And was the statement freely and voluntarily made
by him to you?
A Yes, Sir.
f , Q I wish now, Mr. Smith, that you would please tell
the jury what your conversation was with Mr. Bryant at that
time in regard to the disappearance or murder of Emmett Till.
MR. CARLTON: We object. Your Honor.
THE COURT: The objection is overruled.
MR. CARLTON: We want to renew our objections at this
time which we made earlier during the preliminary examin-
ation of this witness and for the same reasons that we
stated then.
THE COURT: Let the record show that the objections of
the defendants are renewed at this time as they were stated
in the preliminary hearing made this morning relating to
the same matters, and that the objections are now renewed
( 1 at this time as they were given this morning.
MR. CARLTON: And if the Court please, the defendants
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would like to object further on the grounds that the
corpus delicti has not been definitely established.
THE COURT: The objection is overruled.
0 Mr. Smith, go ahead and tell about the statement
that Mr. Bryant made to you that Sunday afternoon.
A Well, I just asked him about it.
Q What did you ask him?
A I asked him about going down there and getting
that little nigger.
'i 0 Will you please go over that again?
A I asked him why did he go down there and get' Chat
little nigger boy, and he said that he went down and got
him to let his wife see him to identify him, and then he
said that she said it wasn’t the right one, and then he
said that he turned him loose.
0 And where did he say that he turned him loose?
A He said right . in front of his store.
0 Did he say that he went down to Mose Wright's house
to get him?
MR. BRELAND; We object. Your Honor. That is a leading
question.
THE COURT; I don’t believe there has been any test-
'■ lmony in that respect .
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Q Did he tell you where he 'went to get Emmett Till?
A To Mose Wright ’ s .
0 And when you drove up to Roy Bryant's store in
Money that Sunday afternoon, was the store open?
A No, Sir.
Q Where was Mr. Bryant at that time?
A He was asleep in back of the store.
Q And what time of the day was that? ;
A It was around two o'clock approximately.
0 Did he offer any explanation to you at that time
as to why he was asleep?
MR. BRELAND: We object to that, Tour Honor. That has
nothing to do with the case at all.
THE COURT: The objection is sustained.
Q Did he say where else he had been the night before
other than going down to Mose Wright's house?
A He said he went to some of his people - - I don't
remember just who he said now - - and he said he played
cards there the rest of the night.
Q He said he played cards the rest of night?
A Yes , Sir .
MR. CHATHAM: Take the witness.
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RE-CROSS EXAMINATION
BY MR. BRELAND:
Q Mr. Smith, how long have you lived in the Greenwood
neighborhood?
A Since 1921 .
Q And did you live in the city during that time or out
in the country around Greenwood?
A I lived in the city since '28.
Q And prior to 1928, where did you live?
A Well, I lived around Crahen or Moorhead (?) , and
I was there for about five years, and then 1 was at Minter
City for two years.
Q And you have been Sheriff of that County for the
past four years, is that right?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And by virtue of being an officer of that County,
yoU got over the County very much during your administration,
is that right?
A Yes, Sir.
0 And during that period of time you got acquainted
with Mr. Roy Bryant, did you?
A Yes, Sir. • . .
0 And of course, Mr. Roy Bryant was acquainted with
you?
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A Yes, Sir.
Q And you were all friends, is that right?
A Yes .
0 And you trusted him about matters, and he trusted you
about matters, isn’t that right?
A I hope so;* Yes, Sir.
Q Now, in this last summer, in the last primary, you
ran for representative in LeFlore County, didn't you?
MR. SMITH: We object to that. Your Honor. That has
, nothing to do with this at all.
THE COURT: The objection is overruled.
Q That is correct, isn't it?
A That is right.
0 And Mr. Roy Bryant supported you for that office,
didn ' t he?
A Well, I hope so .
Q But you understood that he supported you, isn't that
true?
A Well, I didn't make any campaign for it, but if he
did, I appreciated it.
0 'But if you thought that you were his friend, then
you expected it, didn't you?
A I hope he did,
Q And you believe he aid, isn \t that true?
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A I am not going to doubt it, no. Sir.
Q And when you went up to Money that afternoon, when
you went up there and went to his store, he was asleep back
there in his living quarters, and you awakened him up or
had him waked up, is that right?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Were the other members of his family, the other
A I don't think anyone else was there but he.
Q Noone was there but he?
A That ‘ s right .
Q Wasn't his wife there?
A I didn't see her.
Q Did you see the little children?'
A No, Sir.
Q Did you see anybody else there at all?
A Yes, Sir, I saw some others. They came there when
3
members who were there, were they awake?
we were there.
Q Did you see his Mother?
A No Sir.
Q Who did you say you saw?
A Some others.
Q Where they friends of his?
A No, Sir,- relatives.
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Q And they were there in the store at the time you
were there , were they?
A When I was talking to Roy, they were there in the
store.
Q And they were there when you got there?
A Ho, Sir. They followed me up.
0 But they were there before you took him out to your
car to talk to him, is that right?
A I guess they was.
Q And you requested him to go out to your car where
you could talk to him in private, is that right?
A Mr. Cothran told him to go out there, that I wanted
.to talk to him.
Q Was Mr, Cothran in the car when you talked to him?
A No, Sir.
Q Then Mr. Cothran stood aside there and was not present
when you talked to him?
A No, Sir.
Q It was just you and he there together, is that right?
A That is all, sir.
Q In other words, the purpose of that was so that you
could talk to him confidentially and privately, isn't that
right? •
A Well, I went up there tdt,see , 'what I could do about
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this trouble .
Q But the purpose of that was so that you could talk
to him in private away from. anybody else, even away from
members of his family or relatives, and even your deputy
sheriff, isn’t that right?
A Well, they didn't come out there.
Q But you asked him to come out there for that pur-
pose, didn't you?
A Yes , Sir.
, Q And of course, he left the impression that he was
going to talk to you confidentially, and you left that im-
pression with him, isn't that right?
A Well, I asked him about the trouble down there,
Q Now let's go further on that - - when you asked him
to come out there, when you said that you wanted to talk
to him, he naturally got the impression that you wanted to
talk to him confidentially, isn't that right?
In other words, when he came out and got in the
car with you alone, you closed the door of the car, and you
were both alone in there, isn't that right?
A Well, I imagine that is right.
Q And that was so that you could talk to him there
( ; confidentially, isn't that right?
A Well, he came out to talk. Yes, Sir.
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Q And you talked to him alone and separate from his
kinfolks and also separate from your deputy sheriff, isn't
that right?
A Well, they was standing off to the other side there.
G But they were not within hearing distance, were they?
A No, Sir.
0 And what was said there in the car was just between
you and Roy Bryant, isn’t that right? Just between you
two?
A That right. Sir.
Q Now, Mr. Smith, when you came up there to see Mr.
Bryant, and he came out to your car and got in the car, and
you got in the car with him there, you didn't tell him that
you had come up there to arrest him, did you?
A Not at that particular time.
Q And you didn't mention that fact at all, did you?
A Not right then.
Q X mean, until he made that statement to you, isn't
that right?
A Well, my general purpose was to go up there and
arrest him.
0 But you didn't tell him that, did you?
A Well, not to come on, no, not right then.
Q And you didn't have a warrant for him, did you?
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A Not at that time.
Q Did you tell him that you were investigating the
case for the Sheriff’s Office?
A Yes, Sir - - well, he knew that.
0 I am asking you if you told him that?
A I wouldn't say that I told him exactly that.
Q But you went up there that afternoon as far as
. appearances were concerned, and as far as a reasonable
man would think, where he might have been concerned, you
went up there just as a friend to talk privately with him,
isn’t that right?
A Well, I got him in the car, yes. Sir.
Q Of. course. And you didn’t tell him that any state-
ment that he might make to you anywise incriminating him
might be used against him did you?
A There wasn't no statement hardly made. Hr. Breland.
Q But you didn't tell him that, did you?
A No Sir, I did not.
Q And did you later arrest him?
A Yes, Sir.
0 Did you tell him that you were arresting him?
A Yes, Sir.
* Q Just what were the words you said?
A I told him I was going to have to arrest him and
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If
take him in, and he asked me to let him go in and put on
some clean clothes; which he did.
0 did you tell him what you were arresting him for?
A I told him what I was arresting him for, yes.
Q And you took him right on to jail in Greenwood, did
you?
A A few minutes later, yes, Sir.
Q In other words, you waited for him so that he could
dress and change clothes?
A Well, he waited on some customers and so forth
first .
Q And you didn't have him in handcuffs or anything like
that?
A No , S i r .
Q You just took him along with you to Greenwood and
put him in jail , is that right?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And he stayed there in your jail from that time on
until he was brought to Tallahatchie County, is that right?
A Yes, Sir.
MR. BRELAND: That is all.
( i REDIRECT EXAMINATION
BY THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY:
Q Mr. Smith, the town of Money is in LeFlore County, 123
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is that right?
A Yes, Sir.
Q How long has Mr. Bryant been in business at Money,
to your knowledge?
A Approximately - - I don't know exactly, but I .
wouldn't say not over two years, I don't think.
Q And during that time you became acquainted with
him and he with you, is that right?
A Yes, Sir.
L Q And when you talked to him on this particular Sun-
i
day afternoon, he knew you were Sheriff of LeFlore County,
is that right?
A That’s right. Sir.
Q After he made the statement to you that he did go
down there to Mose Wright's house that night and got Emmett
Till, and then he found out he was the wrong man - - -
MR. WHITTEN: I don't believe any of that .part was
testified to, Your Honor.
THE COURT; I think it was. Go ahead, Mr. Chatham.
Q (Continuing) - - - and found out that he was the
wrong boy and then put him out of the car and released him
where did he say that he released him?
i A There in front of his store .
Q And his store is in the town of Money, is that
right?
132
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. . Pag* 133
I! I
A Yes, Sir.
0 Do you know how far that point would be from Mose
Wright's house where he had gotten him?
A Approximately three miles, something like that,
Q Did he offer any explanation to you at that time
as to why he did not carry the boy back home when he found
out he was the wrong boy?
A He said he figured he knew the way back.
Q MR. CHATHAM: That is all.
MR, BRELAND: Now, if the Court please, we move to
exclude this witness' testimony with reference to that
statement. And any confession or statement made by Mr.
Bryant to the Sheriff at that time would not be admiss-
able, because it has been shown that any statement he did
make was not made free and voluntarily to the Sheriff, and
he was not properly advised of his rights.
THE COURT: That motion will be overruled. The witness
was the Sheriff of Tallahatchie County, and as such, it was
his duty to investigate any and all crimes and alleged
crimes.
MR. CHATHAM: I believe Your Honor used the word
’'Tallahatchie' 1 County, but I believe you meant to say
LeFlore County.
THE COURT : Yes - - excuse me - - I meant to say he was
130
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■ Pa S' 134
the sheriff of LeFlore County.
MR. CHATHAM:. That is all we have for this witness.
(WITNESS EXCUSED)
MR. BRELAND: Your Honor, we don't like to be repetit-
ious but the District Attorney in propounding questions to
the witness used the words or name "Emmett Till". And there
has been no evidence here to show that either party knew
the name of Emmett Till at that time.
THE COURT: It is the Court's recollection that Emmett
Till’s name was mentioned in direct examination.
MR. BRELAND: Then we would like to call Mr. Smith
back to the stand, if you please.
Recalled as a witness for further cross examination by the
defense, having been duly sworn, upon his oath testified
as follows:
GEORGE SMITH,
RE -CROSS EXAMINATION
BY MR. BRELAND:
Q If we understand your testimony correctly Mr. Smith,
you asked Mr. Bryant at that time why he went down there
and got that little ole boy, and you just asked him about
a boy, and you didn’t mention the name "Emmett Till", is
I
131 I
that right?
}02^iKrv 10-6*95)
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A I didn't know Emmett Till’s name at that time.
* Q And so far as you know, neither did Mr. Bryant?
| A No, Sir, I don’t know that he did.
MR. BRELAND: Now, if the Court please, we ask that
his testimony be excluded.
135
REDIRECT EXAMINATION
BY THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY:
Q Mr. Smith, on that Sunday afternoon when you were
talking to Mr. Bryant, and he told you that he had found
out that the boy he had gotten from the house of Mose
Wright was the wrong boy, and he said that he had released
him after that, where did he say he released him?
A In front of his store.
MR., BRELAND: That is repetition. Your Honor.
THE COURT: That question was asked before.
MR. CHATHAM: But before when I questioned him about
this, I used the words "Emmett Till" and that is what they
objected to. And I am just going back to the testimony
about the boy that was taken out of the house and later,
so he said, he was released. I am just clearing that up
as far as the testimony is concerned.
THE COURT: That is correct.
MR. CHATHAM: And I would like for the rest of his
132
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i
Q
A
Q
A
Q
A
Q
any official
A
Q
A
Q
Greenwood, LeFlore County, Mississippi?
Yes, Sir.
How long have you been in that County?
Thirty years.
Thirty years?
Yes, Sir,
And during the past four years, have you occupied
position in that County?
I have .
And what was that position?
Deputy Sheriff.
You were a deputy under Sheriff George Smith, is
that right?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Were you serving in that capacity during the month
of August, 1955?
A I was.
Q As Deputy Sheriff working under Mr. Smith, did you
have occasion to assist him in investigating the death or
disappearance of a negro boy by the. name of Emmett Till?
A Yes, Sir.
Q And in your investigation, did you have occasion to
talk to Mr. J.W. Milam, one of the defendants in this case?
137
A Yes, Sir.
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Q And when was it that you talked to him, Mr. Cothran?
A It was in the LeFlore County jail.
Q You talked to him in LeFlore County jail?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Do you remember how. many days after the body was
found it was that you talked to him, or was i.t before that?
A It was after the boy had disappeared, but it was
after he was placed under arrest for the commission of an
alleged crime'.
Q Who was present when you had this conversation with
Mr. Milam?
A No one but him and myself.
Q And you say , that was in the LeFlore County jail over
in Greenwood?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Did you offer .or promise Mr. Milam any reward for
making a statement to you?
A He didn't make a statement.
. Q But you say you talked to him?
A • Yes, Sir.
Q And in that conversation you had with him, he did
make a statement, isn't that right?
. A That's right.
Q Before that statement was made, did you offer him
135
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*»« « T^§ C ^ , IpT .^l^I,TL.,tI ^ ., TRI AX> , S gK-3^5 . o» 1 p =*< _i
or promise him any reward or hope of immunity afterwards
if he would make any statement to you?
A No, Sir.
Q Did you threaten him or intimidate him in any way
at any time in order to get him to make a statement to you?
A No, Sir.
Q Was any statement made to you on that day in the
LeFlore County jail by Mr. Milam?
A Yes, Sir.
^ Q And was the statement made to you on that day, at
that particular time, freely and voluntarily made?
A Yes, Sir.
Q Mr. Cothran, will you tell the Court in the absence
of the jury what your conversation was at that time with Mr.
Milam?
A I asked him if they went out there and got that boy.
Q When you said "they", did you call them by name?
A I didn’t call anyone by name. I just asked if they
went out and got that’ boy. And then he said, yes, they had
got the boy and then turned him loose at the store afterwards;
at Mr. Bryant's store.
Q Did he say why they turned him loose there?
) A He just said that they brought him up there and
talked to him, and then they turned him loose.
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